New York (April 23) – 2018 marks the 30th consecutive year that New York Junior Tennis & Learning (NYJTL) has hosted the Mayor’s Cup, which is the largest interscholastic tennis tournament in the nation with more than 600 participants representing 160 private, public, and parochial schools in New York City competing in elementary, middle school, and high school divisions.
The NYJTL Mayor’s Cup, which runs from May 31 – June 9, is free to participants and includes 16 team and individual events for beginners to experienced varsity athletes all competing at the Cary Leeds Center for Tennis & Learning in the heart of the South Bronx. Early round matches are played on 22 courts with the final varsity individual matches featured on the state-of-the art Victor Kiam and Pershing Square Stadium courts with viewing for more than 800 spectators.
“With the goal of breaking down all barriers to entry for NYC youth to play tennis, we are preparing to greatly expand the number of participants in the NYJTL Mayor’s Cup,” said George Guimaraes, NYJTL CEO and President.
The NYJTL Mayor’s Cup will offer the innovative UTR (Universal Tennis Ranking) system for the first time. Among its many benefits, UTR is the ranking system used by college coaches to evaluate the talent of players hoping to continue their tennis careers at the intercollegiate level.
“We are honored to work with NYJTL to provide student athletes with more access to tennis and more opportunities to play,” said Mark Leschly, Universal Tennis Chairman & CEO.
In addition, through NYJTL’s partnership with USTA Eastern, individual girls’ and boys’ quarterfinalists will receive free entries to the USTA Eastern College Showcase Day in November.
“We knew we had to get involved because getting more kids on the court and creating college opportunities for them is what we are all about,” said Jenny Schnitzner, ED of USTA Eastern.
Kicking off the NYJTL Mayor’s Cup on Saturday, June 2, 500 program participants, community members, and staff members will “spell out” “NYJTL” on the Cary Leeds Center courts. An aerial photograph will be taken signifying the impact that children playing the sport of tennis have in a community such as Crotona Park.
The NYJTL Mayor’s Cup culminates on Saturday, June 9 with an awards show featuring live entertainment by NYJTL’s ACES Afterschool dance troupe and singers performing today’s hottest hits. Awards celebrating scholar athletes include:
- NYJTL Growth Award -The highest honor, given to the graduating senior(s) who have inspired others through their dedication to tennis and education
- USTA Eastern Sportsmanship Award – Presented to the NYJTL Mayor’s Cup player(s) who have shown character and integrity while competing
- UTR “Impact Story” Award – Awarded to Mayor’s Cup participant(s) who have created video submission(s) describing how tennis has impacted their lives
- NYPD Precinct 42 Service Award – Recognizing scholar athletes who have shown personal growth through their participation in the Cary Leeds Center Serve & Connect Program
- Victor Kiam “Going For It” Scholarship – Awarded to the NYJTL program participants who have demonstrated character and “grit”
- NYJTL Mayor’s Cup Team and Individual Awards – Presented to each team and individual elementary, middle, and high school division winner and finalist
The official NYJTL Mayor’s Cup application is now online at www.nyjtl.org/mayors-cup.
Media are welcome to attend the NYJTL Mayor’s Cup. The Cary Leeds Center for Tennis & Learning is located at 1720 Crotona Avenue, Bronx, NY, 10457.
About New York Junior Tennis & Learning
The mission of New York Junior Tennis & Learning is to develop the character of young people through tennis and education for a lifetime of success on and off the court. Since 1971, NYJTL has changed lives through tennis, education, healthy living, and character development programs. Today, it is the largest youth tennis and education non-profit in the nation, reaching 75,000 K-12 New York City youth.
In June 2015, the $26.5 million Cary Leeds Center for Tennis & Learning opened its doors as the flagship home of NYJTL in the heart of the South Bronx. In April 2017, the Center completed its final phase of construction and opened the Pershing Square Stadium, the Victor Kiam Stadium, and the Dalia and Larry Leeds Viewing Bridge. The Cary Leeds Center provides more than 6,000 hours of free tennis court time annually to the community’s under-resourced youth.
NYJTL celebrates the diversity of the children who participate in every program, providing 3,000,000 hours of year-round programming that serves youth from all five boroughs. All NYJTL Community Tennis and Afterschool programs are offered at no cost to its participants.
About Universal Tennis
Universal Tennis is the company behind UTR Powered by Oracle, a rating system that provides a single unifying language and standard for tennis players across age, geography, gender and economics. UTR Powered by Oracle is the official tennis rating system for ITA, PTR, Tennis Channel, USPTA, and WTT.
About USTA Eastern
The USTA Eastern Section, based in White Plains, N.Y., is a not-for-profit community service organization whose mission is to promote and develop the growth of tennis.
The section encompasses all of New York State, Northern New Jersey and Greenwich, Conn. It is one of 17 geographic sections of the United States Tennis Association, the governing body of tennis in the United States, and supports more than 49,000 members. The section also establishes and maintains rules of fair play, high standards of sportsmanship and represents, in its jurisdiction, the programs and policies of the USTA.
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Contact:
Joe Ceriello
jceriello@nyjtl.org