PanCaribbean back on board All Ja event
FOR the fourth consecutive year, PanCaribbean Bank will this year sponsor the All Jamaica Junior Lawn Tennis Championship, to the tune of $1.5 million.
The top junior event is set to serve off on July 7 and conclude four days later, it was announced at a press launch yesterday at the Sagicor Life Building in New Kingston.
Sabrina Cooper, PanCaribbean’s vice-president – relationship banking, said her organisation is pleased to be associated with the event once again.
Said Cooper: “We are aware of the positive impacts that success in sports has on self esteem of our children, which is why sports is one of the three areas of our Sagicor PanCaribbean Foundation — the other two being health and education.”
She added: “Thank you, Tennis Jamaica, for giving us the opportunity to once again partner with you. Together, we have invested in something we both pride our institutions on — creating well-rounded citizens.
This event has arguably been the premier junior tournament on the local tennis calendar for the past 40 years and serves to prepare the top players for international competition, including the International Tennis Federation’s (ITF) Jamaica Junior Championship which will be held on July 17-24 at the Eric Bell Tennis Centre.
The ITF events feature under-18 competitors from all over the world in their quest for valuable ranking points.
Almost all of Jamaica’s national representatives, past and present, have participated in the All Jamaica Junior Championship.
In recent years players such as Ryan Russell; Demar and Damion Johnson; Dominic Pagon, Eldad Campbell, along with Brandon Burke, have gone on to play Davis Cup for the country.
Tinesta Rowe, Alanna Broderick and Kadija Richards represented Jamaica in the Fed Cup, and this year over 150 participants are expected from across the island for the PanCaribbean event
Top female junior player Shantal Blackwood said this tournament is important for junior players as it helps them garner ranking points.
Saud Blackwood: “The PanCaribbean all Jamaica Juniors Championship is one of the premier junior tournaments in Jamaica and it gives me the opportunity to compete against other top juniors across Jamaica.”
She added: “Winning the under-16s and reaching the 18s girls final moved my ranking points up. I’m very grateful to PanCaribbean Bank for taking on the challenge through these difficult times to sponsor this prestigious tournament, thereby enabling juniors players like myself to develop our competitive skills.”
