A former 15-year ATP tour player and grand slam finalist, South African John-Laffnie (JL) de Jager is still passionate about the sport and its growth. Acting as Fed Cup, Davis Cup, World Team Tennis and Olympic head coach, de Jager still works to grow the sport in his homeland. Forming a tennis academy and foundation in Pretoria, de Jager has dedicated his time to try and provide a better life for South African children back home.
Using the Match Point Foundation as a platform to promote tennis and skill development in schools, de Jager provides after school programmes incorporated with tennis activities, meals for over 750 kids daily and a dedicated school for children with disabilities. Part of his mission is not only to raise the next crop of South African pros but to give back to the area and community around him. JL feels that tennis is a great way to teach kids about the skills necessary to become something great later in life.
As he learned through his personal experiences traveling and coaching, he understands that costs run high and not all are lucky enough to be able to compete at the highest level. That’s why he wants to reach out to South Africans globally in the hope that he can bring about change and put South Africa back into the global light as a tennis power. His idea is to refine the very best of the best juniors South Africa has to offer and give them the best coaching and travel advice they need in order to attain success.
JL has created a network of services for South African tennis enthusiasts including a long-running South African tennis magazine originally titled Match Point Magazine, his own tennis academy, the aforementioned Match Point Foundation, and he still serves as South Africa’s captain.
Ubuntu will feature an exclusive interview with John-Laffnie in the June edition.
