Great Britain’s Fed Cup team will return to action this weekend as they bid to return to the World Group for the first time since 1993. The tie against Kazakhstan will be played at the Copper Box Arena in London’s Olympic Park – marking the first time the Fed Cup has been played in East London.
To celebrate the occasion, the LTA threw a SERVES Festival for over 150 local youngsters aged between 7 and 16. The event took place at the Lee Valley Tennis Centre, just a stone’s throw from the Copper Box Arena. Everyone got stuck into a fun day of drills, competitions and games, before taking home a medal and a special SERVES t-shirt.
To top off the day, GB Fed Cup captain Anne Keothavong and players Harriet Dart and Katie Swan came along and got involved on court. Dart said: “It’s amazing, there are so many kids here. We’re just trying to inspire the next generation and get more people playing.”
The festival is part of a week- long series of initiatives run by the LTA in local schools and venues across London in the build-up to the highly-anticipated Fed Cup clash this weekend (20 – 21 April).
SERVES launched in 2016, aiming to transform the lives of disadvantaged people by giving them the opportunity to play tennis. SERVES courts now ‘pop-up’ at over 200 sites every week in places as diverse as mosques, church halls and youth centres.
Over 10,000 young people have been engaged in the programme to date and over 600 coaches, youth workers, community and faith group leaders have been trained as tennis activators. 79% of SERVES venues and 76% of participants are in the 30% most deprived communities across the UK, with almost half of participants from BAME groups. Find out more about SERVES.
Back the Brits
Follow the GB Fed Cup team this weekend by catching the live action on the LTA Facebook page or on BT Sport 2.
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