Four schools. Four states. One mutual love of tennis.
This week, young athletes from Wesley College, Prince Alfred College (Adelaide), Wenona College (Sydney) and Scotch College (Perth) came together for a combined schools Interstate Tennis Challenge hosted by Wesley College with Head Coach of Tennis and elite tennis player, Lauren Breadmore (OW2001).
The weather could not have been better for this exciting inaugural Interstate Tennis Challenge held at the Albert Park Hockey and Tennis Centre. And it could not have taken place at a more exciting time in the tennis calendar than the first week of the Australian Open!
With a focus on mixed doubles, the Interstate Tennis Challenge saw girls and boys from the various schools teaming up to compete against each other. This provided students with the opportunity to build new friendships and gain valuable experience in an interstate setting.
Lauren, who has competed in five Grand Slams at the Australian Open shared some of her experiences as a professional tennis player with students. She also shared strategies as to how the world’s best tennis players utilise their mindset to maximise their performance on and off the court. ‘Like Djokovic, you need to learn how to train your mind as well as your body. He is constantly training his brain to remain present, be resilient to adversity and adapt to change.’ Lauren shared.
‘Most importantly though,' she says, ‘this event is about friendship, building new connections and enjoying the present moment.’
Wesley’s girls and boys APS First Tennis teams have had phenomenal success. They have dominated over the past three years, with our Girls Firsts winning the premiership for three consecutive years (2021, 2022 and 2023) and our Boys Firsts winning the premiership for two consecutive years (2022 – shared with Caulfield Grammar and 2023). Lauren has led Wesley Tennis as Head Coach since 2018 and is also the CEO of XSOAR Perform, a Melbourne-based peak performance company. XSOAR partners with Wesley College to deliver extra-curricular tennis programs including a High-Performance Tennis Program.
Find out more about Wesley's High Performance Tennis program.
