Life experiences from our international student players at the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy.

What’s it like being a student at the Mouratoglou Academy? We ask Asian student players Yu Shan, Melati Devi and Kotaro Horiuchi about their experience at the most advanced tennis center in Europe.

MY LIFE AT THE

How have you changed as a player since you joined the Academy two years ago?

Here they changed my mental side a lot. Before I came here I was very negative on the court, whereas here they helped me to improve my mental game in matches and trainings.

What is the big difference between playing in China and playing here?

The coaching is more open-minded, it’s not repetitive. When I was playing in China I felt under pressure because I had to listen to the coach and do everything he told me to do without questioning anything. Here if I feel something is wrong, I can just talk to the coach and we try and solve the problem together.

You are obviously far away from your home in China, do you ever doubt or feel home sick?

Yes I do. I find that for us girls it’s more diffi-cult to deal with these kind of emotions than

for guys. Sometimes I doubt and feel tired but my coach Max helps me a lot in these moments. He’s here for me and puts me back on track.

In a few words how would you describe life at the Academy?

It’s like a big family. We live together, play together and compete together, there is a lot of soli-darity. Everyone here is like a brother or a sister to me. Even if you are new to the Academy, everyone takes care of each other and makes sure you fit in.

What are your goals once you graduate from the Academy?

After I graduate from the Academy, I want to try and become pro. With the Academy it’s my best chance to become pro and I want to give it a try.

Melati Devi16 years old, Indonesian

How would you describe your life at the Academy

The academy is very open. Everyone can fit in. It’s a real mix, everyone just hangs out together. Here we get to do a lot of things that we would not normally do in a normal schooling environment. We’re blessed to be able to live and play tennis in the south of France, which is a really nice area. It can’t get any better than this.

How would you describe the tennis and study program at the Academy?

The academy provi-des a really good balance of school, tennis and fitness.

How have you changed as an indivi-dual since you joined the Academy?

I’ve become more independent for sure, because we live alone. We don’t have our parents to plan our life, therefore we have to be organised and manage oursel-ves.

What are your goals once you graduate from the Academy?

My goal is to get into a really good US college and obtain a scholarship and take it from there. For sure I will continue to play tennis in the US.

Yu Shan 15 years old, Chinese

What is the biggest challenge you face at the Academy

Injury is for sure the biggest challenge. For a tennis player it’s easy to get injured and it’s a big loss if you can t play. You lose confidence and your rhythm.

How would you describe the competi-tion in-between your fellow players at the Academy?

The atmosphere is very competitive within the Academy, sometimes a bit too much but it keeps you on your toes. The competition can really be felt during tournaments, but you need this competitiveness and most of the time it’s healthy competition. We’re all friends but also competitors at the same time.

How would you describe your coach?

My coach Vlad is awesome! Everyone here likes their own coach and have their own way of working with their coach. I’ve been with him for two solid years and he’s always been the same. I’ve progressed alongside him and I wouldn’t go for another coach.

What’s the one thing that strikes you about the Academy?

There sure is a lot of friendship going on at the academy.

Kotaro Horiuchi 17 years old, American-Japanese

Founded by Patrick Mouratoglou, in the heart of the French Riviera lies the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy. The most advanced tennis center in Europe, which regroups an international tennis-study program, a staff team of 20+ experienced tennis and fitness coaches and sporting facilities in a refined Country Club environment.

35+ different nationalities (including many Asian players) live and train together at the Academy. Much more than a simple school or training ground, the Academy shapes each individual according to the values of respect, disci-pline, self-management and open-minded-ness.

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