Babu to present at elites ITF Conference in London
Italian job. UTA chairman Babu (R) handing over the winner’s gong to Italian Ornago after he defeated Ivan Nedelko in the men’s singles final to win the Futures 2 on Sunday. PHOTO BY A. BABIRYE
What you need to know:
- Big gathering. The conference is expected to attract around 200 delegates, all of whom will have expertise and interest in widening participation in sport.
KAMPALA. With almost all the other sporting associations in the country either enduring a period of inactivity or preparing for their international season, there is no denying that the Lugogo Tennis Club has been the place to be for the partisan sports faithful. The International Tennis Federation (ITF) Uganda Professional Circuit, currently in its third week, has set Lugogo alight with over 200 players from different continents, displaying fireworks in their bid for ATP points.
And for a country that was only readmitted to ITF and Confederation of African Tennis (CAT) at the turn of this year, the ITF have been pleasantly surprised by Uganda’s quick re-organisation and ability to host four consecutive circuits.
It is on that backdrop that ITF have continued to reward Uganda’s for showing renewed passion by inviting Uganda Tennis Association (UTA) president Cedric Ndilima Babu for the inaugural ITF Worldwide Participation Conference.
Two-in-one presentation
The elites meet will take place at Chelsea FC’s Stamford Bridge Stadium in London from July 8-9. “I will not just be attending but I am privileged to be given an assignment as one of the presenters,” Babu told Daily Monitor in an exclusive interview after handing over the trophy of the ITF Futures 2 Uganda Pro Circuit to Italian Fabrizio Ornago on Sunday.
“I am going to present on tennis development in Africa and the launch of Special Olympics Tennis in Uganda. ITF does appreciate and this is a testimony to our commitment to the game hence my invitation to join the round table of the big players in take the game to another level at the global stage.” ITF President David Haggerty, multiple Paralympic gold medallist Monique Kalkman-Van Den Bosch and former Great Britain Fed Cup captain Judy Murray will be among the elite presenters.
