He will be the ambassador of a U-16 tournament in São Paulo that will deliver a wild card to play the junior of the Paris Open.
When he visited New York last September, he toured the halls of Flushing Meadows and was applauded at the Arthur Ashe that saw him champion in 2009, Juan Martin del Potro He assured that he still did not feel like a former player and left the door open for a future return. Next week, he will step on a court again, although from a different role.
Because he will be the Ambassador of a tournament that will bring together in São Paulo 32 of the best Under 16 rackets in South America (16 boys and 16 girls) and that will give the champions a wild card to play the junior tournament of Roland Garros. A unique opportunity, which is even more special due to the presence of the man from Tandil.
The dream of playing in the Parisian Grand Slam is one shared by all South American players, who are trained and take their first steps in professionalism on clay. And thanks to this contest, called “Roland-Garros Junior Series by Renault”two young tennis players will be able to fulfill it.
The tournament was born from a collaboration between the French Tennis Federation (FFT), la South American Tennis Confederation (COSAT) and the Brazilian Tennis Confederation (CBT), with the support of the international federation (ITF), which governs the junior circuits. It will summon players from ten countries of the region, the host Brazil, Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay y Venezuelaon the powder courts of the Sociedade Harmonia de Tenis, in the capital of São Paulo.
The albiceleste representatives will be the santafesina Luna Cinalli, 14 years old and 155th in the junior world ranking; the tandilense Sol Larraya Guidi (15 and 172nd) and the Ushuaiense Valentin Garay (also 15 and located in the 774th step of the classification).
The two champions will earn a place to play in the junior main draws in Paris, something that would otherwise be out of the reach of the Argentines, since the “cut” for the big tournaments in juniors is around 60th place. of the ranking.
And as if this prize were not enough, the boys will live an unforgettable experience, because they will receive the advice and advice of Delpo, champion of the Davis Cup 2016double Olympic medalist (bronze in London 2012 and silver in Río 2016) and former number three in the world.
“The tournament’s ambition was strengthened with the presence of Juan Martín Del Potro as ambassador,” he said. Aymeric LabasteDirector of International Development of the FFT, who also highlighted the commitment of ESPN, which will broadcast the matches on Star+.
“Together with COSAT, we are fully committed to providing all 32 players with a unique experience that will be useful for their future careers,” he added.
Del Potro knows very well what it is to play on French brick dust. In his junior stage, he played the tournament twice: in 2004 he lost in his debut and the following year, he reached the quarterfinals and lost to Andy Murray. Already as a professional, he played it nine times and reached the semis twice. In 2009, he lost in five sets to the Swiss Roger Federer, who later won his only title at that Majors. And in 2018, when he was eliminated by the Spanish Rafael Nadalwho lifted his 11th trophy in Paris that year.
Last year, in an interview with The nation During his time in New York, the man from Tandil recounted: “I like to advise and advise children, but because I like them to listen to me and I feel that my message reaches them, that they can take note, apply it and there is a positive result behind it”. He will now be able to transmit all his experience to some of the future stars of South America.
