Lily & Payton Shine
On the ITF Junior Tennis Calendar, there are 94 tournaments listed for the month of June 2025, covering every corner of the globe. Of those 94, only three have a star beside their listing on the calendar : one in Poland, one in Thailand and one at The Club at White Oaks in Niagara-on-the- Lake. Those stars were awarded based on the feedback received from players, coaches, families and officials at the 2024 tournaments, and are indicative of the very highest standards for event management and the player experience they create. Tennis Director Giovanni Rodriguez is justifiably proud of the recognition, particularly because the tournament is dedicated each year to the memory of Bruno Agostinelli Jr, a favourite Niagara son and beloved national coach.
This year’s tournament was played on June 16-20, and is especially memorable because it featured two champions from SouthWest Region. Lily Rochon lives in Oakville and trains at ORC. After surviving a three-hour marathon in the first round of girls singles, she sailed through to the final where she beat Sylvana Jalbert (USA) 6-2 1-6 6-4.
In the girls doubles final, Payton Dith & Sophie Dement defeated Lily Rochon & Tessa Puente by a score of 6-4 7-6. Payton lives in St Catharines and trains at White Oaks.
Max Geissinger lives in Munich, Germany and was making his first trip to Canada. He won the boys singles title over Andy Tchinda Kepche, who trains at the National Tennis Centre in Montreal. Max & Andy teamed up to win the boys doubles over Joachim Marx & Filip Vujicic, both of whom also train at the NTC in Montreal.
Although ITF Junior tournaments are open to players under the age of 18 at the start of the year, most of the players in the draws are younger. The nine players who made the finals are all ages 14, 15 or 16 – making their high level of play and outstanding sportsmanship and composure all the more impressive. Our two singles champions have the best WTN ratings of the group, at 19.3 and 20.8. The finalists are close behind at 21.1 and 21.2, while the doubles players are in the range of 24 to 28.
A total of 107 players competed over the course of the week. While the majority are from Canada and the USA, there were ten other flags on the drawsheets : China, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Mexico, Morocco, Taipei, Togo, Turkey and Ukraine.
It’s unusual to find an indoor tournament on the calendar in June and, in fact, questions have been raised about it. During the week prior, a J30 is played outdoors in Ottawa. Despite the attractions of outdoor tennis, the general consensus among the tournament participants seems to be “don’t change a thing!” It’s a pleasure for the players to have access to the gym and other amenities at The Club at White Oaks, and tournament management is optimized as well. Outdoor conditions and variables add to the stress for officials/parents/coaches, and having an indoor week gives everyone a break during the long outdoor schedule. [Something similar happens on the WTA Tour, with the indoor event in Stuttgart followed by the outdoor event in Madrid.].
Congratulations to Giovanni and his team on yet another wonderful week! Read more about Bruno Agostinelli and about the event in his memory HERE.
