Elon's tennis teams traveled to England this week, experiencing the culture, attending Wimbledon and playing against top British tennis academies.
NCAA regulations allow athletics teams to make one foreign trip every four years, and this year’s trip marked the first time Elon’s tennis programs took advantage of the opportunity. Last summer, the men’s and women’s basketball teams became the first Phoenix squads to travel abroad, advancing the university’s goal of sending all student-athletes abroad at least once during the collegiate studies.
Seventeen student-athletes joined head coaches Elizabeth Anderson and Michael Leonard, assistant women’s coach Bob Owens, Director of Athletics Dave Blank, Senior Women’s Administrator Faith Shearer and faculty adviser Wally Bixby on the voyage to England.
After arriving in London on June 29, the Elon group kept busy, visiting historic sites such as Windsor Castle and Covent Garden, learning to navigate London’s famed Underground and enjoying traditional British fare. On July 2, the teams visited the All-England Club to witness their sport played at the highest level during Wimbledon’s Round of 16 matches. The Phoenix then took to the court themselves for matches against Win Academy in London and Alderley Edge in Cheshire.
The teams will return to the United States on July 7.