Week of September 22, 2023

Tennis Canada Names Gavin Ziv as new CEO

The Chair of Tennis Canada Peter Kruyt announced on Tuesday that following a rigorous global search, the board has approved Gavin Ziv to become its new Chief Executive Officer following the retirement of Michael Downey at the end of the year.

“Tennis Canada was blessed with exceptional candidates during this process, and we are delighted Gavin rose to the occasion. The board unanimously extends its congratulations to him on his well-deserved promotion,” said Kruyt. “Gavin lives and breathes the Tennis Canada mission on a daily basis, he is highly respected in the industry and has already contributed to many chapters of growth across all aspects of our game.”

Ziv has spent more than 25 years at Tennis Canada, most recently in the position of Chief Tournaments Officer, spearheading the ATP and WTA 1000 National Bank Open presented by Rogers tournaments in both Toronto and Montreal. He will assume his new role in the late fall, with Downey officially stepping down at the end of December 2023.

“It’s an honour to be named as the next Chief Executive Officer of Tennis Canada at this time of growth in our sport,” said Ziv, 48. “We have become a world-leading tennis nation under Michael’s excellent stewardship and I look forward to building upon his legacy by mapping out the best possible future for our sport in Canada. Together with the Tennis Canada Board and our passionate staff we will continue to raise the bar on winning, elevate the fan experience by being digital-first, provide broader access to year-round facilities and create a safe and inclusive environment for all.”

Ziv was instrumental in leading Canadian negotiations to secure equal prize money for WTA players at the National Bank Open starting in 2027 and was named one of 20 Ambassadors for Game. Set. Equity., a strategy to advance gender equity in Canadian tennis. He also played an integral part in negotiating the agreement for the expansion of the ATP/WTA 1000 events from seven days to a 12-day format by 2025.

In his many years at Tennis Canada, Ziv has been responsible for all facets of the international competitive structure in Canada as well as officiating, and overseeing all professional tennis events including the Davis Cup and Billie Jean King Cup ties.

After serving on the WTA Board from 2018-2023 Ziv was elected to the new WTA Ventures Board in early 2023. He has also served on the ATP Media Board since 2017 and is the first Tennis Canada executive in history to concurrently sit on WTA and ATP boards, reflecting his reputation for effective collaboration and consensus building.

“I couldn’t think of anyone more appropriate to steer the Tennis Canada ship into the future,” said Downey, who spent 15 years as Tennis Canada’s President and CEO. “Gavin knows the business inside out and has spent 25 years working passionately for the greater good of our sport. Most recently, he crafted our five-year strategic plan and 10-year revenue forecast for the National Bank Opens. I have every confidence that, with Gavin at the helm, Tennis Canada will continue to reach new heights.”

After an illustrious career split over two terms, Downey announced in February that his tenure will come to an end on December 31, 2023. Under his leadership, the organization experienced success both on and off the court that is unparalleled in its 133-year history.

A timeline of Ziv’s career at Tennis Canada can be seen here.

The staff at the OTA congratulates Gavin and looks forward to working with him and his team!

Story and photo courtesy of Tennis Canada.

Girls. Set. Match. 

The next two Girls. Set. Match. Tie-Break tournaments in the series were held last weekend at Martingrove Tennis Club in Toronto and Hillfield Tennis Club, in Hamilton.

Girls. Set. Match. tournaments, initiated by Tennis Canada in partnership with the Ontario Tennis Association and National Bank, provide girls between 10 and 14 years of age with a unique opportunity to compete in a fun, short-format tournament that is removed from the pressure of regular competition.

As well as playing in the tournament, the participants are treated to a Pizza Party, and they are given a free Girls. Set. Match. sweater.

Pictured above, Girls. Set. Match. participants at Hillfield.

For more information on Girls. Set. Match., click here

2nd Annual ICTA Junior Mixed Team

Championships

Signup deadline is September 23!!!

A UTR / WTN Ranked Event

A Junior DOUBLES UTR / WTN ranked event is coming to Sobeys Stadium on Sunday, October 1!

The Intercounty Tennis Association (ICTA), Ontario Tennis Association (OTA) and Tennis Canada (TC) have teamed up to present the 2nd Annual ICTA Junior Mixed Team Championships.    

All matches will be UTR / WTN verified with 2 divisions of play:

1)    Division A1 – 4 players (2 boys and 2 girls) combined UTR ranking of 30+
      (Avg 7.5 per player)
2)    Division A2 – 4 players (2 boys and 2 girls) combined UTR ranking of 22-30
      (Avg 5.5 per player)

How to Register a Team:

• Team / Individual Registration: Contact Tournament Director, Todd Orrett at juniors@intercountytennis.com
• Teams: Create your own (play with your friends) or Todd Orrett will assist
• Registration Deadline: Saturday, September 23 (no exceptions)
• Entry Fee: $30 per player HST included includes LUNCH (cash only – pay on event day

Waves of Play and Team Composition:

• START TIME: 8:00 am; END TIME: 6:00 pm. Event times may vary based on team numbers.
• TEAM COMPOSITION – 2 GIRLS and 2 BOYS

Other Information:

• ICTA/OTA will set up draws, and schedule play. Tennis Canada will track results
• All teams are GUARANTEED 3 matches
• There will be alternating waves of Boys / Girls Doubles and Mixed Doubles matches
• Prizes will be awarded to all players

Find more information in our Tournament Calendar here

Dale Power Benefit Tennis Tournament

The Dale Power Benefit Tennis Tournament and Dinner was held at Gananoque last Saturday and it was a smashing success! With close to 30 participants, the event started off with a doubles “mixed and matches” round robin, some refreshments at Chez Kent McLeod and Linda Pollon and then a five course meal and awards presentations at Maple Leaf restaurant. There was lots of love, kindness, laughter, stories as well as  live music from Phil Leger and Peter Wardrope to cap off a great evening of tennis with friends united in supporting Dale. Thanks to everyone who attended and contributed to the event. Special thanks to Ted Thompson and Yonex for their support, Pavel Soupal and his team at Maple Leaf restaurant for a beautiful meal and Kent, Linda and Sarah for hosting and organizing this memorable edition of the annual Gan Open! It was great to see Dale (above, 2nd right), back in action and making so many people happy while chasing the little yellow ball. Truly: “Over the net, in the green, between the lines…”, everyone is already looking forward to the next year! 

Learn more about Dale and help support his journey to recovery.

New Nike Footwear and Apparel

at Merchant of Tennis

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Capital Kids Finale at

Crystal Beach TC in Ottawa

Crystal Beach Tennis Club in Ottawa hosted the Capital Kids Tennis Program Summer Celebration last weekend. On-court activities, the Merchant of Tennis Smash Cage, food, refreshments, and prizes were all part of the action.

The event had a great turnout with 56 families, 92 participants and 189 people (participants+family). Great job to all coaching staff and program coordinator Sofia Christow-Filleul who saw the program through in 2023, the first year post-Trillium grant. Thanks to the National Capital Tennis Association (NCTA) for providing a budget and keeping the program going. Thank you to the University of Ottawa tennis team players for volunteering their time and helping to make the finale a smashing success. The debt of gratitude to Crystal Beach TC, Sherri Smith, Steven Harrison, Lily Yip and past president Ian Ash for their continuing support of CK and all things OTA! Thank you to NCTA sponsors: KUNSTADT Sports and Pure Kitchen. It was truly a community event, and we are excited for the next steps including an indoor season. Running at three locations, Tanglewood, Crystal Beach and Manor Park, there were close to 1,000 participants in the program in 2023. Congratulations on a great season!

Want to Play on Red Clay? Year-round?

Join the Club

Toronto Tennis City is happy to announce that midtown's beloved tennis club will operate throughout 2024 with memberships available for the whole family. This is your chance to join in on the fun!

We offer our members top-tier programming, lessons from Tennis-Canada-certified coaches and outstanding customer service in a beautiful location at Yonge and Davisville in Toronto.

Secure your membership today! Contact Michael Zimmerman - E: z@acetennis.ca | P: 647-381-6464 or visit www.torontotenniscity.com for more information. 

OTA Club and Regional News

Halton Tennis Association Helps Wallace Park

Celebrate its 60th!

The Halton Tennis Association and the Wallace Park Tennis Club Team threw a great event celebrating the 60th anniversary of the Club. The occasion featured a delightful Mediterranean-themed menu, prepared with expertise by club staff and volunteers, ensuring everyone had an unforgettable time. The highlight of the day was an exhilarating exhibition match in which the Wallace Park Club Champions, Rishab Ravikanth and Ruan Coetzer, who took on and defeated the Halton Tennis Association Champions, Julio Murch and Stefan Ivanovic, 7-5, 7-5. Among the distinguished guests was Rosemary Goodwin, OTA Regional Chair for Southwest, who continues to foster strong relationships with players and clubs throughout the Halton Region.

We Want Your Club and Regional News!

Is your club hosting a significant tournament or event, does it have an anniversary coming up, is there a volunteer or player who deserves recognition for their contributions? If so, we want to hear about it. Just send a photo and a short write-up to us and we’ll feature it in SPIN in our OTA Club and Regional News section. To submit a story for consideration, just email pmalcomson@tennisontario.com.

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Tournaments - Community - Outreach -

Courses

Click the calendar above to see the live list of upcoming events

OTA Marketplace

A Marketplace for Everything Tennis!

Whether you’re pro advertising your coaching services, a company wanting to reach the tennis enthusiast, a club looking for new members or you just want to sell some old wooden tennis racquets – you can reach over 15,000 tennis players in Ontario each week via our weekly newsletter SPIN, with an ad in the OTA Marketplace section. Listings and pictures are only $125 per week and all we need is a horizontal image like the one above (500 pixels deep X 800 pixels wide) and a couple of paragraphs. We’ll do the rest! Need creative help? We offer creative services at a reasonable cost. For more info, email pmalcomson@tennisontario.com. Include “OTA Marketplace" in the Subject line.