The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

A group of parents have voiced their concerns about two recent Bahamas junior national tennis team trips, including issues about organisation of team travel, team uniforms and the selection process for coaches of the national teams.

The trips were the World Juniors team competition in El Salvador in February 19-27 and the Junior Billie Jean King and Junior Davis Cup from March 4-12 in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.

Their concerns were raised on Monday at the Thomas A Robinson National Stadium.

The parents' issues were also highlighted in a letter to the Bahamas Lawn Tennis Association (BLTA) on March 28, however, one of the parents, Chandra Ferguson, the mother of BreAnn Ferguson, said they have yet to get a response.

"All of the players that you would see go on these trips are kids who are training at what we call high-level performance levels," said Ferguson, who led a group of parents that included William McCartney III, Shayvon Clarke and Bernadette Major.

"They train for several hours per week with highly qualified coaches and as parents we make great sacrifices to make that opportunity available for them and they make great sacrifices in balancing training and school."

As players between the ages of 12-15, she said, they have all represented the Bahamas before on national teams and they all know what a well-organised trip with a qualified coach is like.

"What we've seen on these two last trips does not stack up to what we experienced as a country and it does not stack up on a regional or international level you will see when you go to these events,” she said.

With the team selected from November, she said the BLTA refused to call a meeting with the parents to appraise them of what to expect when their children travel and to introduce them to the coaching staff taking them on the trips.

"For the under-14 trip, we travelled on February 19,” she said. “That meeting did not take place until February 16 and the meeting actually took place because the parents expressed the concern that it had not happened as yet.

"So three days before travel was when the meeting took place. The rules state that a coach should be in contact with their players at least one week in advance of the trip. During that meeting, some players, their tickets had not yet been secured. At that point, we had not yet received team uniforms, which a parent actually sponsored and organised the team uniforms."

During the meeting, Ferguson said there was no discussion between the coaches, the players and parents about the rules and regulations for them to abide by during the trip, and travel authorisation forms were never issued for the parents to sign.

The same thing occurred with the trip in March for the Jr Billie Jean King and the Jr Davis Cup competitions.

Ferguson further noted that the selection of the coaches was a mystery and even though it was required, an official answer was not given until they forced the BLTA to meet with them three days before the team was to travel.

She noted that although the requirement for the selection of coaches is that they must be ITF Level One, the coach selected for the girls under-14 team was only involved in the BLTA's play and stay programme, which is an introductory programme.

"To send someone like that with your high-level, high-performance players is basically an insult, not only to the players and parents, but to the country," Ferguson said. "The result that came from the girls team reflected on the support that they had."

She noted that they couldn't understand why Paula Whitfield was selected as the coach when she had never travelled before in that capacity, but only as a chaperone. She said that they requested to the BLTA to make some changes, but their plea were denied.

However, she said Bradley Bain, the coach for the boys team, was an ideal choice and it showed with the team finishing as the runners-up.

Ferguson also stated that the coaches selected for both the Jr Billie Jean King and Jr Davis Cup teams were not adequately qualified to coach the teams, and that the BLTA ignored their request to have certified coaches travel with the teams.

She said there was an incident in the Dominican Republic where the players were given permission by the coach to congregate in the same housing complex with the girls to study - a total violation of the rules.

After the boys team was pulled from the tournament the next day, she noted that the coaches did nothing but inform the BLTA to intervene. She said it was the parents, who accompanied the team in the Dominican Republic, who met with the team officials to have the boys team reinstated.

Major, the mother of Michael Major, said tennis is a very expensive sport and while her son trains every day and is one of the top junior players in the country, she felt it was a disservice to him and other players in their final under-16 tournament.

"For me and for him, we would like to see change," she said. "It's very expensive. His training is intense and it's a lot on his body as well."

Clarke, the mother of Sarai Clarke, said in the past, coaches, parents and players are notified by the BLTA before they travel and they are not kept in the dark.

"In a lot of cases, some of the players are not here and so they have to meet the team in a general location," she said. "All of that needs to be discussed prior to the trip. If there is no communication, then you are setting yourself up for problems.

"In the past, it was never an issue. With the under-14 and under-16, we were just in the dark. You can't duck and dodge parents. Parents have to prepare children for these trips, parents pay for coaches, parents for travel, so the least you can do is keep communication open. You can't duck and dodge parents."

And McCartney, father of William McCartney IV, said as a first-time parent involved in the sport he didn't realise how expensive it was, but he wants to encourage his son because it's his passion.

"But like I asked the other parents on the trip, what was going on?" he said. "Does this normally happen? I went to El Salvador and I went to the Dominican Republic and we basically had to deal with everything.

"You tried to call the president and he wasn't answering his phone, so we had to basically be the coaches, the chaperone and everything. You don't want to send your child to a country where they speak Spanish and they don't know the culture. We were parents for all of the kids. Everyone was calling me 'daddy'."

In response to the claims, the BLTA said they were made aware of the matter brought forward by Rachel Thompson, a participant on a national tennis team that travelled last month.

"The BLTA was delighted to nominate Rachel to the team and have her represent the country," the BLTA said in a press release. "Rachel’s hard work qualified her for the team in the third position.

"As a part of the three-member team, she performed well in El Salvador as she debuted on the courts for Team Bahamas on the second day of competition. Again, she, along with her teammates, represented well."

The BLTA noted that they have conducted a review and had the opportunity to meet with Thompson and her parents and received the coach's account.

"Rachel has expressed how she felt that she was treated. The association promotes the safety and wellness of our players, both physically and mentally," the release further stated.

"The coach has noted that she showed the same appreciation for all the players' well-being and welfare. The coach’s care and kindness toward the players during the trip was referenced."

In expressing their deep regret that the trip was not as rewarding as Thompson would have anticipated, the BLTA said she has expressed her willingness to serve on another team in the future.

"We were pleased that she participated in the BLTA's Spring Classic Tennis tournament, which culminated yesterday (Sunday)," the BLTA stated. "The Association has welcomed Rachel in our hearts over the years as we see her joy and growth in the sport.

"We will always seek to preserve and protect her best interests. We are working with Rachel and her parents to ensure any negative feelings that have developed due to this trip are addressed, as we give her the support she needs in her tennis journey."

The BLTA also revealed that they are ensuring that current measures and procedures that are in place for national team travels are strengthened.