The Minister of Culture and Sports hosted yesterday in his office the former tennis players, Andy Ram and Yoni Erlich, together with senior officials of the Tennis and Education Centers in Israel; “We found a true partner for the vision of empowering tennis and its values”
While their good friend, Novak Djokovic, made his comeback at the Australian Open tennis championship, former tennis players, Andy Ram and Yoni Erlich, met with the Minister of Culture and Sports, Miki Zohar. The meeting was also attended by the senior officials of the tennis and education centers in Israel, including: Erez Vider – CEO, Eyal Taoz – director of strategy and projects, Lilo Zarfati – director of operations, Ofri Lankri – director of the field of local authorities and government, and two managers of the tennis and education centers in the Arab society – Alam Ebrahim from ITEC Sajur and Muamen Haj Yehya from ITEC Taibe.
During the meeting, the variety of tennis programs in 23 towns where the tennis and education centers operate, most of them in the geographic and social periphery, were presented to the minister. All this, in addition to 6 social impact programs in which about 2,000 children who are dealing with family, social or economic background difficulties, are integrated, and in addition to 15 million NIS scholarships which are distributed every year, whose goal is to give real and worthwhile opportunity to learn the tennis game and to be developed through the game.
In the meantime, Ram and Erlich reviewed the state of the tennis industry in Israel, emphasizing the many efforts currently being invested in identifying talents with competitive potential, specifically in the peripheral areas.
The minister’s words showed that he is very knowledgeable in the tennis industry and intends to increase the number of tennis players in Israel, in coordination with the industry’s officials and harnessing the best professionals in the field. The minister also said that tennis has brought a lot of respect to Israel in the world, and he is determined to bring tennis back to the forefront of sports in the country. He noted that the inclusion of Andy Ram and Yoni Erlich in the cultivation of tennis in Israel, is a certificate of honor for the Tennis and Education Centers, due to the recognition of their ability to contribute to the advancement of children, both on a personal and social level.
The Tennis and Education Centers in Israel stated: “We thank the Minister of Culture and Sports, Miki Zohar, for the important meeting and his appreciation for the extensive activity of the centers on three courts: the competitive court, the achievement court and the community court. We have found a true partner in the vision of empowering tennis and its values in Israel, so we will continue to open up for more and more children a promising future on the tennis courts and in life itself.”
