JC Ferrero Equelite Academy celebrates anniversary: "Like a big family"
25 years ago the basis for one of the most famous tennis academies in the world was created: the JC Ferrero Equelite , under the direction of ex-number 1 Juan Carlos Ferrero. Ex-top 10 players Pablo Carreno Busta and Carlos Alcaraz, one of Spain's greatest talents, are currently training here. Both players had an exciting exchange of blows in the final of the tournament at the Academy, organized on the occasion of the 25th anniversary. Pablo Carreño defeated Carlos Alcaraz in straight sets, both want to donate their winnings. We spoke to Ferrero about his work at the academy.
by tennisnet.com
last edit: Aug 19, 2020, 03:21 pm
In 1995 Antonio Martínez Cascales (62 years old) bought an old house in Casas de Menor, a district of his town Villena (Alicante), and had two clay courts built next to it. He took five boys there with him, whom he trained in the tennis school he founded in 1980. One of these children was Juan Carlos Ferrero, later winner of Roland Garros and number 1 in the world.
Today, 25 years later, Cascales and Ferrero are still working together. And their academy, the JC Ferrero Equelite, is becoming more and more prestigious.“There was nothing here, just fields and orchards. Little by little we have grown to what Equelite is today: with 20 seats, fitness room, sauna, soccer field, apartments, school, summer camp, hotel, swimming pools, paddle tennis ... with 60 employees ", Ferrero remembers his Arrival. "Our story is personal and familiar."
Mr Ferrero, your protégé Carlos Alcaraz is perhaps THE greatest Spanish talent since Rafael Nadal, he made international headlines at the age of 15. What is special about him?
The things I should point out about him are that he is a hard worker and always listens to you. He has determination and shows that in every game and practice. He never loses the belief that he can still win. And he always strives to keep improving.
How long has he been training at the Equelite Academy?
It started with us in September 2018. He'd come by sometimes before, but we didn't make it official until we prepare for 2019.
What kind of guy is he, tennis wise, off the court?
He is not shy and makes friends easily. He's also pretty responsible, despite his age.
What are its strengths and weaknesses? What do you expect from him in the years to come?
He is still very young and should do many things to keep growing and reaching the top. We don't want to put pressure on him, but if he keeps working like this we expect he will soon become a professional.
How did he get to your academy?
He comes from a town near the academy, has participated a lot in tournaments and sometimes trained with us. When his manager was looking for talks about a collaboration, everything went pretty quickly.
What's it like in general: do you scout players? Do parents come up to you to look at their children? Do you offer scholarships?
The academy is open to any player who needs a place where they can focus on their goals. We don't want to have to ask the players to come to us. It should be your choice. And if you decide to do so, you will learn and improve - in an environment that has been specially prepared for you.
Is there a big competition between academies in Spain? Nadal has one, Bruguera, Sanchez, Ferrer ... What is the biggest difference that sets the Equelite Academy apart from others?
I invite everyone to come to us and draw their own conclusions. If I should say one thing, I think the bigger difference is our surroundings. In many ways: away from a big city, with a lot of nature. Our employees are like a big family trying to support the kids.
Are you there most of the time?
I live at the academy all year round and know all the players who have been with us over the year. I supervise the training and the attitude of the players and also stand on the pitch with the children.
Pablo Carreno Busta was a top 10 player and then slipped a bit. Now he's back at 25.
He's having great times but some injuries stopped him last year. He played really well in Australia. This year he can still catch up a lot in the ranking, he has nothing to defend until the end of the year. He works pretty well and has the level to stay in the top of the world for many years to come.
Today's players have almost no weaknesses (unlike in the 90s), they are all in shape, perfect athletes.
While it has improved in every way, I think tennis itself hasn't changed too much. I see faster and stronger players every time, but they all develop, which makes the matches as exciting as they were before. I think the competition between players will be even greater in the next few years.
What's the plan for the new academic year despite the situation? Is there a specific anti-Covid plan?
We are pursuing a lot of measures, despite the tournaments and the summer camp we were able to avoid an epidemic here. We don't know when a vaccine will be found. We must do our best to keep up with control measures. We take a lot of measures and prepare for the school year as always, with our own school, teachers and so on. We are ready to close everything if necessary. But our goal is for our players to keep growing and improving so that we can keep playing if possible. Of course, with the safest possible measures.
Can you take some positive thoughts from the past few months?
Training without clear short-term goals is more difficult. But we tried to make our players realize that it is lucky to be able to continue training and improve. That was a big plus. They can keep playing among themselves and take great advantage of working on things they cannot change during the competitive season.