Nico Arguello Uses Coaching to Pass Along His Tennis Passion

Hispanic Heritage Month is Sept. 15 – Oct. 15 and USTA Nebraska is highlighting Nico Arguello, a tennis pro at Genesis Westroads in Omaha who is originally from Bogota, Columbia.

When Nico Arguello’s older brother came home from tennis practice, he showed Nico how to play at age 11, and soon after got involved in group tennis lessons. A few years later, he got more serious about the sport and started competing on the junior tennis circuit in Columbia. He has been in love with the sport ever since.

He followed his brother’s footsteps once again, when he came to the United States to play tennis at Midland University in Fremont from 2012-2016.

“Once I was presented with the idea of paying for part of my college while playing tennis I decided that I was going to look for a scholarship as I was not ready to finish my tennis career,” he said. “I got a few offers from different universities, but the coach at Midland University was very persuasive and said they would match my scholarship that other colleges had offered.”

Though he enjoys all aspects of tennis, mental toughness is his favorite part of the game.

“Tennis is a very solitary sport and because of this the mental aspect of the game is huge,” Arguello said. “Being alone without anybody to sub makes you learn a lot of things about resiliency , decision-making and critical thinking and it is unlike any other sport I've played. Although at times it is my least favorite part too, you have to learn how to make the most out of the worst days on the court as well.”

As a tennis coach at Genesis Westroads in Omaha, he loves to share his passion with his students and watch them develop and grow as players.

“Watching a person progress and develop a passion for tennis and compete is a great payoff as a coach,” he added.

As for the future, Arguello hopes to help more players get collegiate tennis opportunities like he did, as well as starting his own tennis program in the future and making the sport more accessible to every demographic.