STAR PLAYERS

We're in the festive season, so many of you are absent from the Club, perhaps recovering from recent over-indulgences: so let me be your reporter.  Yesterday, Boxing Day, was not without high-level players: the stars were our top player, Jonathan Eysseric, practising with the well-known Nice player, Alizé Cornet (27th in the world at the moment).  Here they are:

Sorry you missed them! Better luck next time........

What about a our 15-year old up-and-coming American girl, Miranda Ramirez, more regularly to be seen on our courts.  She has been training hard with Thomas Finck preparing for a tournament in Stockholm next Monday:

They all look good, but it must be a difficult life in professional tennis; our Jonathan having tasted being World Number One as a Junior, is struggling to be in the World First Hundred this coming year: he will need a lot of support!

A word about Jonathan's father Didier and the 'Eysseric Team'.  This is the Academy associated with our Vignal Tennis Club, and so caters for very promising players from anywhere in the world, who are prepared to work exceptionally hard to keep very fit, and to increase their level of play on court. They are also required not to neglect their studies. You can consult the official Academy website here.

Now back to the Club with a reminder, should you need it, that you may have other priorities for assembling here.  The following photo shows one example:

And of course the beloved restaurant............ 

our chef Manu is on a very well-earned holiday until the 20th January.

Bonne année à tous.

NOVEMBER RAIN

It arrived finally,  after almost unbelievably good months of September and October, a busy Sunday restaurant on a sunny terrace for the beginning of November; but then by Tuesday the rain was coming down in torrents with scarcely a pause all day. We can't complain, although flooding from the nearby river Brague was damaging.

Let's look back a little then to some of those glorious days, starting with the barbecue midday meal celebrating the end of the Internal Tournament.  Here is a photo of our chef Manou, braving the smoke and heat as he prepares the sausages and chicken for the roasting:

He was not short of eager takers:

The next event was something of a surprise; a collection of September birthday members had arranged a restaurant apéritif and lunch, in the Club restaurant, where else? And first of all, our Captain Mike had risen to the occasion and was proud to show off a brand new pair of trousers!!

This took the centre of the stage of course:

The whole group was a cheerful lot as you see here:

By happy coincidence, our Ladies' Group were celebrating one more of their numerous events close by.  Here's another smiling lot!  

There must be something very special about this Tennis Club!

ATYPICAL SUMMER

Alternate periods of glorious blue skies and surprising cloud cover have typified the summer days this year. Amazingly intense electrical storms occurred during the month of July on up to four separate occasions .......... instead of the usual once, for a break in weather mid-August. As an advantage to all this, we were spared nights of stifling heat, and more play was found possible during the less oppressive late afternoons. Play on the covered courts gave occasional distressed participants describing sauna-type conditions inside, but in general our two 'bubbles' were in good use.  As an illustration of the overall lower summer temperatures, the swimming pool must have only rarely reached 24C; a facility well-appreciated anyway by the more aquatic members. The restaurant was giving good service throughout these months; staff, members and visitors benefiting from this well-situated terrace and well-proven cooking by Manu.

Now we are in mid-September and the weekly stages-activities of the teachers and visiting children are long time over.  New lessons and training sessions are in progress which I will illustrate by photos of a particularly active training session witnessed yesterday. An outside training expert was in control of a select number of Academy-level students, along with their teacher Mathieu showing an excellent example: the energy expended was exceptional!  First is Diegori flashing past:

next Nikita side-stepping on the service-line:

and Mathieu on the base-line:

John-Thomas sprinting along:

Dacha side-stepping with Damon on the base-line

All this activity going on simultaneously at great speed..........

A well-earned rest was eventually needed:

............ before the next storm brewing-up, apparently!

A happy international group working on their physical condition before the next tennis sessions.  So we have here a teacher from Corsica with students from Guadeloupe, Australia, Latvia and France, training hard together while all we others enjoy this environment in our own ways....

Happy days in the Vignal!   

RECENT ACTIVITIES

The Club has been far from being brought to a standstill by the series of violent electrifying atmospheric disturbances to which we have been subjected;  four such storms during the last few weeks!  Fortunately the accompanying rain, however heavy each time, has been short-lived & insufficient to stop play for more than a morning. Regeneration of the clay court surfaces has nevertheless necessitated considerable hard work each time, & we are once again indebted to our friendly Fred for his efforts.  The result has been the preservation of our 5 terre-battues in the necessary fine fettle for high-level tournament play.

Member activities over this period have been as usual joyous & varied:  the first by the initiative & organisation of member, Yann. He encouraged a series of friends employed, as himself, by Air France to arrange their free days to coincide with each others, to give occasion for a two-day tennis tournament.  Naturally time was left for a happy meal in the Club Restaurant;  here they are enjoying themselves after some vigorous exercise.

A further Club event was organised by the Ladies Group;  their usual efficient 'Round Robin' over the two-hour period.  I missed the initial fancy dress - discarded for the rigours of doubles play, but here are examples of individual strokes by Renée & Jasmin.

 

Tournament matches in the Internal Tournament continued for at least 2 months: Virginie & Sophie are figured separately & then together, to show that there was no ill-feeling although one of them had to lose!

The July Vignal Open Tournament finished yesterday (Sunday 13th) after 2 weeks hard work by Olivier, Virginie & Didier, ably assisted this time by Courentin. Here they all are:

There were about 200 entrants in the Mens' Open alone - reduced to Benjamin Simoncini (-2/6), Benoît Bottero (-4/6), Mathieu Monleau (-2/6), & Thomas Oger (-15) in the semi-finals & to Bottero & Oger in the Final. Here is the worthy winner, Thomas Oger.

In the Ladies' Open, the Final took place on Hard Court between two English-speaking girls;  Brittany Huxley from Australia, & Maika Tanpoco (-4/6) of Philippine origins.  Maika won an energetic & good-natured match 6/3, 7/5. Here she is taking her prizes:

And finally the group of participants in this very successful event.

Bon tennis tout le monde!

DUTCH CELEBRATIONS

The extended Dutch group of members & friends was here in force recently;  they had organised a 'round-robin' again, which they played with their usual good humour & verve.  Naturally the players were joined by many of their old friends for the meal;  friends who had stopped practising tennis & were seen no more at the weekly Tuesday gatherings.  A joyous reunion then, when we others didn't understand a word of what was being said, but recognised the happy atmosphere, even an uproarious ambiance, when the apéritifs were enjoyed, & the initial cordiality developed at table into speeches & much cheering applause. Here is a photo of a small sample of the gathering:                                      

There were eventually nearly 50 relishing the habitual good meal from our chef, Manu's tender care; & out on the terrace under a good sun. Another photo shows that at least some of the conversations were at a very high level!

Everyone was pleased that their former captain, George Buter, was in much better form after his months of illness. Here he is talking to Wim Dekkers:

His place in the organisation of this event, was gallantly taken by Peter Tissot van Patot; not an easy undertaking. Lastly, a record of the only casualty of the day's tennis;  she may have been trying to jump over the net once again!

I'll leave you all to guess whose injured leg this is, & to make sure it doesn't happen to you the next vigorous tennis morning at the Vignal.

As Roland Garros is in full swing, a word about the achievements of Didier Eysseric's eldest son, Jonathan.  He was unfortunate enough to miss entrance to the highly competitive Men's Singles Championship after winning his matches in  the first two Qualifying rounds. But he did also win matches in the Doubles Championships:  with Marc Gicquel they reached the 2nd Round before being beaten 6-3, 6-3, by that formidable couple Bryan & Bryan. He played with the Niçoise, Alize Cornet in the Mixed Doubles to reach the Quarter Finals before being beaten 6-4, 6-3. Locally & individually, Jonathan won the important Grasse Tournament recently for the second year running: remember these achievements when you see him practising on our courts, & boost up your own game a little!

VIGNAL TOURNAMENT

This part of the world, famed for its equable climate, treated us to an even worse first two months of the year than that of our last January & February.  We would like to forget those many days of incessant rain; I even counted up to 11 days loss of outdoor tennis for each of these months.  Once more a hearty thanks to our proprietors, for their foresight & efficiency, in providing us with the means of playing under cover from that often atrocious weather.  Not only this precious facility, but the new experience of many members, of playing on a better-preserved surface: protected from the elements, finding they were playing with a new concentration! So far, so good;  but recently back in the open sunny air, old pleasures enjoyed once more.........

Our annual tournament from February to March also profited from the use of the two covered courts; its success was secured once more by the assiduous work of Didier Eysseric in organising the hundreds of matches with so many players from other Clubs, & to Olivier for receiving all those participants into the Club with his usual good humour. The fortnight of competition ended with finals on the last Saturday this year - to make room for important first team matches the following Sunday.  A busy time then with a successful reception for the Tournament Prize-Giving.  I'll celebrate this with a few photos describing the scene & events:

The cook had made good provision for the amuses-gueules accompanying the champagne & for his valuable work every lunchtime, here he is - our chef Manu, with Oliver, receiving applause from everyone:

and if you haven't yet tasted his tarte aux pommes glace vanille; here's what it looks like:

Another well-liked member of staff, without whom the terres battues would never have been in such good condition, is of course, Fred from Tunisia. He was rather unsafely 'chaired' by Olivier & Didier:

The banners around the courts advertise the generous sponsorship we were lucky to have for this tournament: here is one of the banners in front of the collection of cups for the winners:

  And here is an assembly of winners & runners-up, proudly showing their prizes:

Tournaments are not over for the year:  an internal tournament will take place over the next 3 months until a second Vignal tournament is programmed for June-July; with all the younger age categories this time. 

Start practising as soon as possible:  here is how you should be serving perhaps ............

carla

max

I'll finish this blog with a clear sign of spring with the vigorous sprouting from our well-pruned old willow tree.  Wishing you all a similar vigour in your tennis......