Serious coach on lookout for future stars

By Paul Pickering
DOVETON tennis coach Justin Yeo is on the hunt for Australia’s next grand slam champion, and he’s starting in his own backyard.
Yeo is among a handful of Tennis Australia talent development coaches in Melbourne and will use Doveton as the base for a new high performance program that targets promising four-to-seven-year-old athletes.
The ‘Serious Tennis – Future Stars’ program is part of a nationwide push to attract gifted youngsters to the sport and return Australia to the top of the international tennis tree.
He is inviting coordinated and enthusiastic kids to audition for the program this Saturday, 31 January, from 1pm at the club.
“We’re looking for kids who can throw and catch a ball, hop on one leg and run like the wind,” he said.
Yeo makes no apologies about the fact that this isn’t your average tennis clinic. He is serious about uncovering prospective professionals, sooner rather than later via the motto of ‘early specialisation’.
Put simply, he wants kids to choose tennis over the various other sports competing for their attention.
“I’m not telling them they can’t play other sports. What I’m saying is you can’t play three sports competitively and be outstanding at all three of them,” he said.
“If at 10 years of age they want to play footy then go for it, but I just want to give them that chance to play tennis as a career.
“If you look at the rest of the world, they’re training their kids from an early age to be phenomenal tennis players, and that’s why we can’t match the rest of the world right now.”
Yeo’s program aims to be world class, but he understands the concerns that parents may have about fostering ambition at such an early age.
“There has to be a balance of fun, enjoyment and playing the game,” he said.
“You hear about burnout, but we never get to that limit,” he said.
The kids will learn the game on a modified mini-court, with light racquets and balls to encourage correct technique.
One product of that system is Doveton local Noellada Ahsan, Yeo’s 12-year-old pupil who recently became the youngest scholarship holder at the National Academy of Melbourne, based at Melbourne Park.
And while Yeo is seeking youngsters between the ages of four and seven, he welcomes new pupils of any age in his role as head coach at Doveton.
For registrations for the Future Stars program email blast@serioustennis.com.au. For more information, call Justin on 0422 843 356.