John McEnroe Tennis Academy Announces Partnership With New York Junior Tennis League

Online, August 29, 2011 (Newswire.com) - The John McEnroe Tennis Academy and SPORTIME Randall's Island today announced a strategic partnership with the New York Junior Tennis League (NYJTL) that will bolster the training and support opportunities for New York City area inner-city youth with an interest in tennis. The partnership is the latest in the ever-expanding efforts to make the McEnroe Academy more accessible to the young people of New York.

"We are very excited to work with NYJTL and their participants to get even more New York kids the best possible training in a state of the art facility right in Manhattan," said Academy founder and life long New Yorker John McEnroe said. "NYJTL has assisted thousands of kids over the years by learning life skills and healthy living through our great game of tennis."

McEnroe Academy and SPORTIME Randall's Island General Manager Mark McEnroe explained that "this relationship will help both groups identify and assist those young people who really want to excel in the game, but who may not be given the chance because they don't have the resources, and those resources are what our Academy is all about."

"NYJTL has always been about giving inner city youth the opportunity to use the lessons of tennis to excel in life, and we believe that this partnership will give more young people this chance," said Deborah MacFarlane Antoine, NYJTL President and CEO. "We are both proud and fortunate to partner with the John McEnroe Tennis Academy and SPORTIME Randall's Island on this exciting new project."

The partnership will give an expanded group of NYJTL program participants added instruction, court time and evaluation at SPORTIME Randall's Island, the home of the John McEnroe Tennis Academy, under the combined tutelage of NYJTL and JMTA instructors. This summer, SPORTIME Randall's Island has hosted the NYJTL Advanced Tournament Training group at no cost to the players or their families. The Academy and NYJTL will also identify a select number of top NYJTL players to attend the second session of the John McEnroe Tennis Academy, which will begin this fall.

NYJTL is the largest tennis and education-themed community organization in the United States and offers comprehensive school and community-based programs throughout New York City's five boroughs reaching more than 100,000 youth from ages 6-18. For more than 40 years, NYJTL has pursued its mission by bringing the joys of tennis and education to underserved children changing their lives by providing them with the necessary tools to excel on and off the tennis court.

The John McEnroe Academy approach encourages students to continue their individual schooling during normal school hours and supports continued participation in other sports by its players. Former ATP, Olympic and Israeli Davis Cup player Gilad Bloom is the Academy's Director of Tennis, supervising a team of over 30 instructors.

John McEnroe is routinely involved in daily instruction and provides strategic direction for all Academy business. The Academy's first year of operation exceeded expectations with the enrollment of more than 600 local boys and girls. The second year of Academy training will begin in September.

SPORTIME Randall's Island, which opened in 2009, is the flagship of SPORTIME's 12 tennis, fitness and sports clubs across New York State, which serve over 25,000 tennis and fitness members and an additional 10,000 junior players. The Randall's Island facility has 20 indoor/Outdoor Deco-Turf and Har-Tru courts, all enclosed during the indoor season and lighted for evening play. The facility also has a 20,000 square foot clubhouse, a computer/study lounge and a state-of-the-art fitness and training center.

For details on SPORTIME Randall's Island and the Academy, visit www.johnmcenroetennisacademy.com.

For additional information about New York Junior Tennis League, visit www.nyjtl.org.