What does Talent ID mean?
Talent ID means giving gifted, motivated young athletes an opportunity to learn and train in an environment with other gifted, motivated young athletes and excellent coaches.
Who identifies these players?
Anyone can recommend a young athlete to their Section’s Coaches’ Commission or to a National Coach.
What happens when a child is identified?
We don’t have a crystal ball, but we do know that tennis is a very skill-intensive sport. Therefore, we try to give the parents and coaches of young, gifted, motivated players as much information as possible about early development and training opportunities in their local area.
What role does Quickstart play?
Quickstart is a playing or training format that allows children ages 4 to 10 to learn and play tennis in a healthy, fun and age-appropriate way. Quickstart link
What if my child or student is too good for Quickstart?
Quickstart does not represent a phase of development, it is a tool for teaching and training “small”, young people. Think about how baseball (T-ball), soccer (small teams and fields) and basketball (short hoop) are adapted for children. Good coaches can execute much more advanced training using Quickstart than they could using a traditional format. In addition, teaching children on a full-sized court, using adult racquets and regular balls can contribute to injury in children and is a major cause of drop-out in our sport.
What is the role of the Talent ID & Development department in USTA Player Development?
Our role is twofold:
• To facilitate the recruitment, retention and development of young, gifted, motivated athletes – ages 6-10.
• To establish a network of USTA Certified Regional Training Centers throughout the country to ensure that our best juniors, ages 10-14 are taught the fundamentals of stroke production, footwork and ball recognition and shot selection.