Clocktower Classic Wheelchair tennis to return to Rome
Play will begin Saturday at 9 a.m. at the Rome Tennis Center at Berry College.
Play will begin Saturday at 9 a.m. at the Rome Tennis Center at Berry College.
The United States Tennis Association Wheelchair Clocktower Classic Tennis Tournament returns to the Rome Tennis Center at Berry College this weekend.
Rome Sports Commission Director Ann Hortman said the field for the tournament this year includes 13 wheelchair athletes from as far away as Augusta and Savannah, along with Lebanon and Sevierville, Tennessee. Roman Mark Brereton is among the competitors.
“We’ve lost a number of
players who have moved up a level in competition,” Hortman said. All of the players in the Clocktower Classic are B level players.
Play will begin Saturday morning at 9 with the finals slated for Sunday.
Hortman said this weekend would be a great opportunity for potential wheelchair athletes to come out and see what the competition is like. “I think some people are a little intimidated by the whole thing,” Hortman said. She believes when
they see how much fun it is and how easy the chairs allow them to cover the court, they would become interested. “We’ve got the equipment and we can hook them up with lessons,” Hortman said.
Rome was one of nine communities to receive a USTA Grassroots Grant in 2016 to help grow the sport, and has specialized sport chairs available for people who are interested in learning the game.
The new courts at the Rome Tennis Center were designed to be completely accessible to wheelchair athletes. There are no steps between the terraces and all of the gates to the courts are wide enough for a wheelchair to pass through without any difficulty.