Sylvie Giroux: “Tournament Structure Is A Big Issue In Quebec”

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***Sylvie is the Director of High Performance for Quebec. She was in Burlington as the head coach for the U12 Quebec team. A Tennis Canada certified Level 4 coach, she has been developing juniors since 1985. She worked with tennis coaching guru, Louis Cayer at Nun’s Island tennis club for 25 years before starting working for Tennis Quebec.***

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ONcourt: What are your observations from the 2011 ACE Cup?

Sylvie Giroux: Since a few years, I found that the level of our U12 players has been better. I find that the players are more powerful and that they play a more offensive game. We see also better athletes at a young age with very good physical abilities.

ONcourt: What are the biggest obstacles facing junior development in Quebec tennis?

Sylvie Giroux: The biggest obstacle is our competitive system. In the past few years, we had at least 5 big clubs that are not in business anymore. That means less tournament opportunity during the indoor season. Our players need to play more competitive matches. Some training centers are focused on making more money and have a tendency to forget about the players. We also need to have more young coaches in our tennis structure willing to work with the kids full time.

ONcourt: In recent national junior events there has been a shift in performance from Quebec athletes. Is it just a phase or do you believe there is other reasons for this overall decline?

Sylvie Giroux: One of the reasons is our competitive structure. The other reason is that tennis is a very expensive sport. We lose a lot of very good little athletes to soccer. Team sports are not as expensive. We are trying to find ways to make tennis more accessible to everyone.

ONcourt: In your opinion what could make junior tennis development better in Canada?

Sylvie Giroux: 1. Better competitive structure for the younger kids (because we now have more ITF tournaments in Canada). 2. More tennis facilities. 3. Finding ways to make tennis more accessible to everyone.

November 9, 2011

College Tennis Alumni at the 2021 Australian Open – Part 1: Men’s Singles by Michal Kokta

February 23, 2021

With the first Grand Slam of the year winding down, I wanted to do a little introduction to the main draw players, who competed on the collegiate level before turning pro. This will be a short series of four parts: men’s singles, women’s singles, men’s doubles, and women’s doubles.

Week at Wilson – Interview with Pierre Lamarche

February 11, 2021

Interview by Blair Rickers, Wilson Sports This week we interview Pierre Lamarche whose career in tennis spans close to 70 years. Canadian Junior and National

A deeper dive into second serve statistics

December 13, 2020

The two most widely reported second serve statistics in professional tennis are the number of double faults a player hit, and their second serve winning percentage. If we’re trying to understand the effectiveness of a particular player’s second serve, relying only on those statistics has significant drawbacks. Article by Michal Kokta.

Yves Boulais: No Excuses… Get Working

March 21, 2020

Yves was proud to work with players including Greg Rudsedski, Patricia Hy, Oliver Marach, Eugenie Bouchard and Rebecca Marino, who achieved excellent results on the world stage. He was an Olympic Coach in Barcelona 1992 & Atlanta 1996, and Captain of the Canadian FedCup Team 1998 – 2000.

Week at Wilson – Interview with Pierre Lamarche

February 11, 2021

Interview by Blair Rickers, Wilson Sports This week we interview Pierre Lamarche whose career in tennis spans close to 70 years. Canadian Junior and National

Update on UK Tennis Situation with Master Louis Cayer

March 25, 2020

I would like to share a mindset I instil in all the players I coach, one I believe has greatly influenced all of the player’s performances; “whatever happens, I can handle it.” This mindset is achieved through a systematic, tactical development process, so that whoever the opponent, whatever the surface, regardless of the environment, or scoring, the players can, and will rise to the challenge as it is presented.