The International Tennis Federation has made a change in its youth age group categories, according to Northern Mariana Islands Tennis Association official Jeff Race.<\/p>\n
Race announced during the awards ceremony of the 2006 Coconut Classic Tennis Tournament on Monday that the ITF has implemented new age divisions that NMITA will abide by.<\/p>\n
Race informed all players and officials in attendance that the ITF has decided to scrap the 14-and-under category and instead, replace it with a 13-and-under division. The 18-and-under division remains the same.<\/p>\n
With the adjustments, Race said that instead of continuing with competitions in the 10-and-under division, NMITA will move all 10-year-olds to the 13-and-under competition and will create a nine-and-under category.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s so that we can have a lot of players in the 13-and-under since the 14-year-olds will move to the 18-and-under,\u201d Race told his audience.<\/p>\n
Race added that with the changes, players must reset their goals for the year and continue to pursue improvement in their game, citing that 14-year-old Ji Hoon Heo, who is currently ranked No. 2 in the Pacific region, will not get the opportunity to push his ranking to No. 1 as he will now have to compete in the 18-and-under division.<\/p>\n
Heo earned his ranking courtesy of his impressive finish at the Oceania Junior Tennis Championships last summer in Fiji. <\/p>\n
Heo, however, already has experience playing older players as he competed and won the 18-and-under category in the Coconut Classic, and late last year won a men\u2019s open singles title.<\/p>\n
Race said the Oceania Tennis Federation, which NMITA is a member of, is also abiding by the new changes.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho knows, two years from now when everybody has adjusted, no one will probably remember that there even was a 14-and-under,\u201d he said jokingly.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, newly crowned champions of the Coconut Classic include Mayuko Arriola in the women\u2019s singles, Sonny Decena in the men\u2019s singles, Benjie Decena in the boys\u2019 14-and-under singles, Thea Minor in the boys\u2019 10-and-under singles, Melody Johnson in the girls\u2019 10-and-under singles, and Vivian Lee in the girls\u2019 14-and-under singles. The mixed up doubles crown was awarded to Lee and Minor.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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