TENNIS SHOULD BE AVAILABLE TO ALL KIDS!
By Stephen Wilson
TENNIS SHOULD BE AVAILABLE TO ALL KIDS!
Interview with a professional tennis player and coach.
Second City Teachers spoke to Maria Laskina, a former professional Bulgarian tennis player, linguist and teacher who came to Russia to study Russian. We agreed to the interview on the condition of changing her name. This precaution was taken not just because the interview touches on sensitive issues but because the current climate is increasingly making it difficult to express even views which are hardly offensive. Maria mother is Russian and her father Bulgarian. From an early age she trained intensively as a tennis player practically every day until finally receiving an
injury which ended her dream of becoming a professional tennis player.
Before her injury, Maria had been training in tennis for ten years from the age of eight.
In order to forget this blow ,she decided to come to Russia at the tender age of 18.
At first it turned out to be a rude awakening. When she first came to the railway station in Moscow her passport and belongings were stolen by a thief. She studied Russian, worked at a Russian school and later married a Russian and now has two daughters. She has been living in Moscow ever since. The interview offers us a unique insight into the highly competitive and ambitious world of tennis where parents are often pushing their children beyond the limits to achieve ambitious aspirations.
Second City Teachers
What proposals would you make to improve the training of children in tennis?
Maria Laskina
First of all tennis should be made available to all kids and not just the rich. I'm not saying rich children are bad but they can sometimes be spoiled, lazy or unmotivated. They might not like this sport. But everything starts off not with
pressure. Pressure only begins when the tennis player shows good results. The trainers notice your kid is talented and say "Let's try and make the child a tennis star." So the children have to work hard and do two to three training sessions a
day which can last in total 3-4 hours. This training costs a lot of money for expenses.
Parents have to pay not only for training but for the food at restaurants and the stay at expensive hotels during tours. If tennis players want to increase their ranking they have to take part in many tournaments and win as many games as possible.
A child can win a lot of money for doing this. Now since a lot of parents have invested a lot of money in training their child they are anxious to make money.
Sometimes parents will draw up a contract where the parents get 50% of the income and their child the other 50% . Now some parents, because they have paid a lot of money become emotionally unstable and angry. After their child loses a match, they can go up and scream at them even beating them up. They lose their temper. I saw one mother come up to her child who had lost a match and hit her. While staying at
hotels I would over hear parents screaming and arguing with their children after they had lost a match. I know that they punished some of their kids by making them do hard physical exercises.
Second City Teachers
You told me that some tennis players who are doing badly in a match can break their own tennis racket out of anger and frustration?
Maria Laskina
Once my father bought me this very good and expensive tennis racket. At one match I got angry and threw my racket on the ground and it broke. I was too frightened to tell my father because I knew he would be very angry. So for about one and half to two years I kept playing with this broken racket. I still won game with it but I wondered about why I lost some games and whether I might have won more. When my father finally found out he was very surprised.
Second City Teachers
How do you think coaches can better prepare children for tennis ?
Maria Laskina
I think coaches should be more realistic and not promise the parents that their kids have a chance to earn so much money. Sometimes parents don't have enough money for training and their children lack talent. Many rich kids are really lazy. It is best for them to talk honestly with the parents and they have to look suspiciously at the relationship between parents and children when they notice something is wrong and the behavior shows abuse. Not to do anything to protect
children makes the situation worse.
It is very difficult to persuade parents not to be too ambitious. I also think it should be forbidden to see parents attend training sessions because they like to give advice and this of course, annoys the coach because it is his job. You as a teacher don't like it when a parent comes to your lesson and offers advice on how you should teach.
Second City Teachers
Do you regret training as a tennis player?
Maria Laskina
I don't . The training builds your self-discipline and it expands your horizons. When you have this competition it is good for you. I have made many good friends in tennis. But I don't know if you have noticed that the most famous tennis
don't want their kids to become tennis players.
Second City Teachers
Did you lose your childhood by training in tennis?
Maria Laskina
May be in some ways. My sister and mother went on holiday to different resorts while I did n't have time to go for a holiday.
Second City Teachers
How difficult is it for poor families to get their children trained to become professional tennis players ?
Maria Laskina
I think it is more difficult than previously. The state does not provide enough funding and most of the cost of training falls on the shoulders of the parents who work hard to earn enough money to cover the costs. it is very difficult to
find sponsors. I don't think the facilities and trainers are as good in Bulgaria as in the United States. That is why many parents have emigrated to rich countries so they can make more money to fund their children. I think the Bulgarian Tennis Federation should provide free training for children because
many poor but talented children are missing out.
Second City Teachers
You worked as a school teacher in Russia. Did you enjoy it?
Maria Laskina
I did not enjoy it at all ! The kids were okay. I did not have a problem with them.
But one teacher who was old and strict shouted a lot at the children. I felt sorry for one boy who was hyperactive. He wasn't guilty of this but it was just in his nature. But the teacher put him down and kept shouting at him and I didn't
enjoy this. My Russian was worse than the kids because they had no accent but I had. {Maria 's job was to teach Russian in the school. }
Second City Teachers
How do you find the Russian state school system?
Maria Laskina
I think there is just too much homework and that teachers often use the school textbook too quickly. They hurry it and many pupils don't have enough time to keep up with this. It is not the fault of the teachers but the system.
Second City Teachers
Why did you come to Russia?
Maria Laskina
Many reasons. I wanted to change my life and move on. Moving to a new environment can help you change things. I wanted to forget the impact of my injury in tennis because it was uncomfortable seeing all my friends carrying on with their training to be tennis players when I could not. I don't regret coming to Russia as that would be very egotistic and I have got many things from Russia.
I think that coming to Russia was my destiny and accept that.
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