ÖTV sports director Jürgen Melzer - "Matches are extremely important for children"
Jürgen Melzer had a lot of positive impressions on his Austria tour.
by tennisnet.com
last edit: Mar 27, 2021, 10:08 am
Whenever Jürgen Melzer tackles something, it is always 100% committed. And so the Austrian tennis legend went on tour in his new role as sports director of the Austrian Tennis Association, touring the country to get an overview of the situation. tennisnet.com had a short chat with Melzer, who also looks after Austria's number one coach, Barbara Haas.
tennisnet : Mr. Melzer. In your new role as ÖTV sports director you have traveled all over Austria and visited numerous tennis centers. What was the goal of this trip, what is your conclusion?
Jürgen Melzer : I wanted to get to know the young tennis players and coaches, see how they work and what potential there is. And I also wanted to give a few tips that can help people.
tennisnet : Did that happen in your youth - that an ÖTV sports director stopped by during your training sessions to get an idea of your progress?
Melzer : I think to do my job right, this is the only way to get a good overview. The feedback I've gotten has been that it wasn't done before my time. And I noticed that the kids and the trainers are happy about my visits. That was also one of the goals. But first and foremost, it's about everyone moving forward. And we got that off the ground in some areas.
tennisnet : Did you get the impression that the junior squads are functioning reasonably normally despite Corona?
Melzer : Almost. But one must not forget that the matches that the young players cannot play due to the Corona situation are missing. Especially with children and adolescents, it is extremely important that they play matches and not just train. But: For us it is complaining at a high level. Because we managed to get a lot of children to play tennis. We live in a pandemic. And then you have to leave the church in the village and realize that we don't have to feel embarrassed for our top player and performance level.