The second annual University of Technology, Jamaica (UTech) Knights Tennis Classic will serve off today at the Liguanea Club with an exciting match-up of teams from tertiary institutions, high schools and clubs who will compete for top prizes, including scholarships and the championship trophy.

Plans for the tournament scheduled for today through to Friday at the Liguanea Club were unveiled at a press conference at UTech on Monday.

Coach and tournament director Llocket McGregor noted that the UTech Tennis Classic was introduced to “grow the sport of tennis at the intercollegiate level”. He announced that some 20 participants have signed up to participate in the Classic, which is open to schools, clubs and institutions.

Confirmed participants include tennis teams from UTech, UWI, GC Foster College and University College of the Caribbean (UCC). The competition is still open to additional participants.

The competition will run from 10:00 am each day with registration at 9:00 am. Entry fee is $2,000. Spectators will be admitted free of cost.

McGregor noted that regular FIVB rules will apply for a 6 on 6 format and emphasised that “all teams are expected to be on time for their scheduled matches”. The competition comprises three events — men’s singles, ladies’ singles and mixed doubles.

Professor Colin Gyles, Dean, Faculty of Science and Sport, UTech, told the gathering of tennis players, students and members of the tennis fraternity that “tennis is one of the sports that we have embraced for a long time, which is now starting to mushroom into one of the sports UTech should be known for”.

He expressed hope that the game of tennis will be more strongly embraced on the UTech campus and that the Tennis Classic is one mechanism for enabling this outcome. He noted with pride that UTech Knights emerged victors at the 2013 Intercollegiate Tennis Competition.

John Bailey, president, Tennis Jamaica, in endorsing the UTech Tennis Classic, thanked the university for its commitment to the sport and welcomed the promotion of tennis at the tertiary level. He noted that while the whole world knows about Jamaica’s prowess in track and field, the sport of tennis needs to be nurtured and developed to world-class standards and events such as the UTech Classic can only help.

He reported on the ongoing success of the “Play and Stay” tennis programme being led by Tennis Jamaica in primary schools to promote discipline, focus and improvement in academic performance.

Sponsors of the second annual UTech Tennis Classic are Liguanea Club, General Accident Insurance and Hy-Lite.