News

Boulder, Colorado — Babolat, leading manufacturer of tennis equipment, announces its new partnership with The Gate Junior Tennis Academy. As part of the partnership, Babolat will be the official tennis racquet of this Los Angeles-based academy. The Gate’s focus on developing new talent and helping players reach their potential aligns with Babolat’s commitment to equip a future generation of tennis champions and make the sport of tennis available to more people, young and old alike.

Co-founders Doug Doss and Nathan LeGrand coined the name “The Gate,” founded with a vision of building a gate for young elite players into the game of tennis and coaching them to future success. The Gate has a remarkably consistent high percentage of students playing high school varsity boys and girls tennis, producing over 200 collegiate players, some of whom have gone on to see varying degrees of success on the Pro Tour.

“Coaches and staff at The Gate are clearly committed to cultivating a passion for tennis among young players,” said Rich Francey, Babolat National Key Accounts Manager. “And passion is something we hold very near and dear to our heart at Babolat.”

As exclusive racquet sponsor, Babolat will provide its full range of junior racquets, from the Pure Drive Roddick to the AeroPro Drive, the latter being Rafael Nadal’s weapon of choice. The Gate’s rising stars will be equipped with their own weapons to help them reach their full potential.

“Tennis is a lifetime sport and it’s our mission at The Gate to help each of our players succeed in their own right, regardless of their playing level,” said Barry Horowitz, director of The Gate. “Partnering with Babolat will give our students access to the top products in the industry from a company built on the same values as The Gate-to encourage the sport of tennis amongst all levels of players. This partnership gives our athletes the opportunity to play with the same racquets as some of the best professionals in the industry, which is inspiring to those just starting out.”

For more information on The Gate Junior Tennis Academy, visit thegatejuniortennis.com.

ABOUT BABOLAT

Created in 1875, in Lyon, France, Babolat is the longest-running international company specializing in tennis. Family-run for five generations, Babolat is an innovative brand in the tennis sector providing a complete array of technical equipment for tennis players: rackets, strings, shoes, balls, bags, apparel, and accessories. Babolat equips any tennis players with rackets and strings -including Rafael Nadal (ESP), Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA), Li Na (CHN), Sam Stosur (AUS), Agniezska Radwanska (POL), Nadia Petrova (RUS) and Alizé Cornet (FRA) (these last two also play wearing Babolat tennis shoes). Website: babolat.com – Facebook.com/Babolat

ABOUT THE GATE

The Gate junior tennis academy was officially established in 1993, co-founded by Doug Doss and Nathan LeGrand. Mr. LeGrand brought on Barry Horowitz, initially as Assistant Director, to expand the Elite Program; in 1997 Horowitz became the Lead Director of the entire program that allowed him to begin developing players from a much younger starting point. Now, nearly 20 years later, with a remarkably consistent high percentage of students playing High School Varsity boys/girls tennis, The Gate Junior Tennis Academy has helped produce over 200 collegiate players, some of whom found various degrees of success on the Pro Tour but more importantly, all finding success in life. Moving forward, as the academy continues to graduate junior after junior, and Mr. Horowitz fortunate enough to keep the core instructors intact, the program is constantly dedicated to developing new young talent, so that they may unlock their potential, ultimately following the path of those players before them who entered The GATE.