Bolivia.. and the ATA

This 2012 could not have started better.. I was in Bolivia on a vacation and an ATA development trip. The trip gave me so much energy, not only cuz I hadn't seen my family for the longest time, but also because of the business, or better, the tennis opportunities that emerged. Bolivian tennis standards have climb high and it is now a definite power to recon with in South America. Tennis camps, clinics and coaches education in Bolivia will be a part of the ATA starting late 2012. Not only a way to be able to visit my country more often but also to do what I always pretended to before moving away: to be able to give back!

Twitter

I have become a better twitter user, the ATA twitter account - @atabyrichie - that was linked to the Facebook updates is now more "independent" and it works as as great tool to forward or "retweet" to all of you quotes, news, and links that I find interesting.So check out the links on the right side of this blog, follow me or the tweets i follow! The Echofon app makes it even easier if you have a smart phone.

Thanks Steve!

Steve Jobs was one of the person's that inspired my life for the better. Back in 2009, when for the second time in Sundsvall I found my tennis coaching career in a dead end, I got a you tube link.. Steve Job's Stanford Commencement Speech. I had some ideas in mind until that point but Steve and a terrible accountant gave me the last push to yet another turning point in my life, on January the 19th 2009 I decided that it was time to quit my job and think outside the box. As Steve's put it best "don't get trapped by dogma, which is living with results of someone else's ideas" and ultimately that "the only way to do great work is to do what you love" The American Tennis Academy was born soon after that, and even though it is a been a very trying process with great emotional, personal and financial investments, I believe in what I do, I believe that in the future I will look back and be able to connect all the the dots, I believe that it is all worth it! Of course there are other sources of inspiration, but today I wanna just wanna say THANKS STEVE!

Coaches Education

When I finished TK4 in 2006 - the last of the tennis coaches education in Sweden - I was unsatisfied. I liked the courses of course, but I felt like I needed MORE! - great news on the way!
The Swedish Tennis Federation has decided, about a year and a half ago, to radically change the direction of the Coaches Education program.
Henrik Ekersund, the Educational officer at the Tennis Federation has done a great job benchmarking the current educational system with the leading tennis nations; further, networking with Falun University and Linne University in Växjö in order to bring the coaches education to an academic level. The education will kick start this fall and I am most exited about it.
The correlation between an academic coaches education and the quality of players a country produces are positively correlated. Check out the Tennis Europe's study about the differences between European countries when it comes to education. Is it just chance that Spain and France - among others - are better tennis countries than we at the moment?

Comparision chart of the Coaches' Education systems in Europe - 2011

Rösta på tennisbragder

Taken from the Swedish Tennis Federation's site: Tre radioreferat med tennisanknytning finns på radiosportens top 50-lista. Radiosporten firar femtio och har valt ut 50 referat från historien. Gå in och rösta på något av de tre referat som handlar om tennis. Våra tre världsettor har helt rätt nominerats bland klassikerna. Sista chansen denna fredag. Nr 15 Borg vinner Wimbledon 1980 Nr 18 Wilander vinner Paris 1982 Nr 24 Edberg vinner Wimbledon 88 Gå in och lyssna här - och rösta!

US Open quotes..

some quotes that caught my eye during this final: Facebook - ---Nadal, I'm not with you, but in attitude you are n 1. What a fighter! - ---What the heck is going on in this final!? - ---Is just to lay back and enjoy. - ---R we watching tennis or boxing? just slapping forehand and backhand, who is going to give up first..? - ---( Mats Wilander) Once again....if you are not watching the tennis...turn it on....immediately! Twitter: ----Djokovic, please win the tiebreak, I wanna go to bed ----Anyone else having trouble breathing? ---- this is one of the sickest US Opens matches Ever.. this crowd is batship awesome!! ---- wow I haven't seen a move like that since Nintendo's Racket Attack! Favorite part of the match: Nadal -during the 3th set tie break- running over to switch sides. Could not have send a clearer signal! Fav think I overheard Nadal (in Spanish) "bring it up man, I am here just to keep fighting"

Warming up for the final!

a behind the scenes of SUPER SATURDAY @ US Open 2011 and the question is: Will Nadal be able to reclaim the title from the the indestructible Nole?

Twitter, Nick, and I

Twitter is awesome! Sure it is changing our language with all the # and the @ , but, still a great tool in it. Concise, to the point and not "pretend perfect" like Facebook posts tend to be. I like it most during the important tournaments!! Today's tweet that reflected my point of view the most came from the legendary Nick Bolletieri: "The loss has to be one of, if not the, most devastating losses in Federer's career." I guess we will only find out in year's to come when Fed writes his tell all book!

History repeats itself...

Djokovic proved himself tonight as a Champion. McEnroe believes that turning the match point match against Fed @ the US Open last year gave Nole the mental advantage to start the year strong. Turning it around this year again was just Tennis at it's best! A great match to watch indeed! I had 3 news sources - simultaneously- and a chat open, all of them had given up on Nole and even criticized him for the way he was handling the crowd. But when we all called the match over, Nole used that champion's psych and made what only a few can!

Rain Rain go away...

.. we wanna watch Fed take it away!! Everyone is looking forward to the 1st semi today. Experts, coaches, commentators, and the public in general are leaning towards Fed.. but not just necessarily because they wanna see him win, but mainly because we all want an epic match!

"I wanna be the best tennis player in the world"

thanks to Ulrika for this link. Read this DN article about: *Lancelot Carnello, tio år och en av världens bästa tennisspelare i sin åldersgrupp, är sist ut i DN Söndags serie om tidstypiska barndomssomrar. Hans barndom utspelas i ett årtionde som fokuserar på leverans. Föräldrarna har gjort det till sin livsuppgift att hjälpa honom att prestera. To the Article

Play and Stay 2

why is it better to work in the movement rather than the technique at early stages? by creating athletes rather than "pure tennis players" we work for the long run by making sure the kids have a movement memory that will help them learn the required technique easier, the kids will be able to solve situations abased on experience, avoid injuries in later years, and maybe even one day develop technique further. A great athlete is Monfils:

0901 CRISPY - Monfils shot

US Open Highlights

Federer, Djokovic through in New York

A Champion's mindset

Took this from a news site:

Nadal hoping for sunny conditions against Federer
Posted on Friday Jun 3rd at 7:00pm

If it rains during the Roland Garros men’s final, Rafael Nadal says it could favor his opponent, Roger Federer. The current forecast is for a 70 percent chance of light rain on Sunday.

"For me, I prefer the sunshine always, and higher bounces," said Nadal, who owns a 11-2 record against Federer on clay, but did fall to him in wet conditions in the 2007 Hamburg final, which ended his 81-match winning streak on dirt. "So for my game is better if the ball is fast and if the bounces are higher. If the rain is there and the day is cloudy, sometimes the ball stays lower. So that's a little bit an advantage for him.
But seriously, I don't have the power to control the weather, so if rain, I gonna think that is an advantage for me; if sunshine, gonna think is advantage for me. I have to think positive all the time because I cannot control that."

I'M A CHAMPION!

A football inspirational speech that give she the chills every time..
you can find the text under



Today gentlemen, I am honored to coach you, more honored to take you onto the field of battle. There is another honor to be bestowed upon you, that is the answer that comes with that question
WHO AM I ? I'M A CHAMPION !
That's right and i need you to remember that all throughout this game, i will conquer what has not been conquered
defeat will not be in my creed. I will belive what others have doubted. I will always andevor the prestige honor, and respect of my team. I have trained my mind and my body will follow
WHO AM I ? I'M A CHAMPION !
I will acknowledge the fact that my opponents do not expect me to win, but i will never surrender. Weakness will not be in my heart. I will look to my comrades, to those who have brought me into this world and thoses ho have trained me and i will draw strenght from them
WHO AM I ? I'M A CHAMPION !
I will gladly go out into the field of battle, and i will move, groove and do everything thaht I can do, and I will reach my field of battle by ane means at my disposal. And when I get there, I will arrive violently. I will rip the heart from my enemy and leave it bleeding on the ground, beacause he cannot stop me.
WHO AM I ? I'M A CHAMPION !
To my side I have comrades, comrades that have been with me throught thick and thin, throught sacrifice, throught blood, through sweat, through tears. Nver will I let them fall. Never will I let them down and I will never leave an enemy behind, beacause our opponent does not know my heart.
WHO AM I ? I'M A CHAMPION !
No one will deny me, no one will defy me, and no one will tell me who and what I am and can be. Belivef wil change my world, it has moved continents and countries, and put man on the moon, and il will carry me through this battle.
WHO AM I ? I'M A CHAMPION !
Defeat, retreat those are not in my words, I don't understant those definitions, I don't understant when things go wrong, I don't understand mistakes, but I do understand this: I understand victory, and I undertsand never surrendering. NO matter how bad things go, my heart and my mind will carry my body when my linbs are too weak
WHO AM I ? I'M A CHAMPION !
Today will be that day, not tomorrow, not next week, but right now, right here, in your house, and in your home
WHO AM I ? I'M A CHAMPION !
History will remember me, and I will not have to worry about him being kind. I will define myself. I will write my own praises. And non one will tell me what I can and cannot be. I will never go home, not without giving everythiong I have got
COZ WHO AM I ? I'M A CHAMPION !
WHO AM I ? I'M A CHAMPION !!!
WHO AM I ? I'M A CHAMPION !!!!!

a funny Djokovic!

I'd never believe that Djokovich's impression of Sharapova would make it as an Official Head add..

Tennis Play and Stay

This past week the Swedish Tennis Federation launched officially it's Tennis Play and Stay program in Växjö. Even though the Play and Stay concept is not new worldwide nor in Sweden, there are still many clubs that have failed to implement it. I have been using the ideas behind this program for a while now and have totally adapted it to my trainings since about 2008 and I can see the difference that has made creating better players -when compared to the older traditional methods.
Being one of the key persons for the development of this program in the Region TENNIS NORR I will dedicate this month to blog about PLAY AND STAY so that players, coaches and parents get inspired.

Let's kickstart it with my favorite tennis couple ever: Andre Agassi and Steffi Graff.

The Future of Swedish Tennis

This month's Tennis Europe Newsletter has an article about the Swedish Tennis Federation plans to improve the chances of new coming Swedish player to get into the tour.

an interesting part of the SvTF sportschef about training and it's effects:

before you read this, understand that by "windows" the text refers to "Windows of opportunities" a term that was coined to determine at what ages are athletes most receptive to learn different sets of skills.
Using the Windows of Opportunities as base for the training sessions - as we do at the ATA- optimizes trainings by working specifically in what a player is most receptive at at that particular time.
När ger träningen bäst effekt?

Under Tennisförbundets nya Träningslära del 1 så har mycket av fokus legat mer på vikten av att träna vid rätt tillfälle och vad som skall tränas. Under åren har olika trender kommit och gått. En del av oss kommer ihåg 70-talets alla löp pass, 80-talet fokusering på stretching för att inte glömma 90-talets styrketräning. Nu pratar vi mycket om ”windows”, när ger träningen av alla de egenskaper en tennisspelare skall ha bäst effekt. Vi är helt säkert alla överens om att bäst effekt av teknikträning sker upp till pubertetens inträde. Betyder det då att vi inte skall träna de tekniska efter pubertetens inträde? Självklart inte. Detsamma gäller ocksp andra egenskaper. Att resultatet av aerob träning inte ger den effekt man önskar före puberteten är känt. Men, betyder det då att vi inte skall träna aerobt med våra 13-14 åringar. Självklart inte.

Ber att få citera ett exempel från American Academy of Pediatrics som tar upp aerob träning, dvs konditionsträning. Jag tar det på engelska så vi inte missar något:



The general concepts still apply—until puberty, there is a limited ability to improve aerobic capacity just by training alone. Once puberty is reached, improvements in your child’s ability to use oxygen occur rapidly and progressive gains can be made. Although it appears that there is a certain unseen upper limit to improve aerobic capacity before puberty, this does not reduce or lessen the need to train aerobically.

This is a very important distinction. There is strong evidence that young athletes with a good foundational base of aerobic exercise can have even better improvements in aerobic ability once they reach puberty than those who start aerobic training at a later age. For example, a swimmer or runner who has already had some years of moderate training before her growth spurt has a better aerobic base from which to improve once puberty arrives. Kids who train in aerobic sports also better their performance because of improved technique and efficiency of movement, advancing skill level, maturing coordination, and growing motivation.

Federer's footwork

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2009/08/31/sports/tennis/20090831-roger-graphic.html