FAIRFIELD, CT- Ten-year-old Grace Ginley is an up-and-coming New England junior from Fairfield, CT. Grace currently competes at the green ball level out of INTENSITY Tennis Academy in Norwalk, CT and already has a passion for women’s equality and standing up for women’s rights. Learn more about Grace and her mission as we celebrate Women’s History Month all March long.  

 

How long have you been playing tennis? 5 years

 

How often do you play? Twice a week

 

How much do you enjoy tennis, and what makes it so enjoyable for you? I look up to my sister (Ellyse Hamlin, Duke University Class of 2019) and I want to be as good as her maybe even better.

 

Do you play any other sports besides tennis?  Soccer, dance and basketball

 

What is your favorite snack during a match? A granola bar and a banana

 

What is something you always have in your tennis bag? I always have my sister’s lucky bandana. ADVERTISEMENT I like to wear it and it gives me confidence. 

 

Do you have a favorite memory yet from your young tennis career? When I watched my sister play, she would fist pump and yell, so now when I play tournaments, I remember her doing it and now do it myself. 

 

You have said you want to change the wording of sportsmanship to also include sportswomanship. How did you become passionate about this issue and why is it so important to you? Women deserve to be treated equally, and being a young woman, I want to stand up for my generation. 

 

What does girl power mean to you? It means that girls have the power to stand up and change this generation and stand up for equal rights. 

 

Who is your tennis role model? One of them is my sister who played at Duke and is now coaching at Yale, so in my mind, she is very successful. Another one is my coach and father (Ryan Ginley). He has been playing from when he was very young and has coached a lot of great players.

 

Do you have a female role model outside of tennis who you look up to? I look up to Megan Rapinoe. She stands up for women’s equality and isn’t afraid to say it.