Thanks to all of you, the RTA is pleased to announce that Richmond has been awarded third place in the USTA’s 2010 Best Tennis Town in America contest. As a result, the City of Richmond will be the recipient of a $25,000 grant from the USTA.
The ceremony took place today during the U.S. Open and plenty of Richmonders travelled to New York to be a part of the excitement in the Arthur Ashe Stadium. Officially representing Richmond were Eric Perkins, RTA Vice President, and The Honorable Ellen Robertson, Vice President of Richmond City Council. The other two finalists were Atlanta, GA, awarded $50,000 for second place, and Charleston, SC, awarded $100,000 for first place.
Eighty-two cities around the country vied for the USTA funds in this competition, so the RTA is proud to have created the video application that secured one of these coveted awards. The RTA anticipates meeting with Richmond City officials in the coming months to allocate the funds, which will go to support community tennis programming and tennis facilities in our area.
Many thanks are owed to all of the RTA volunteers, city officials, and tennis clubs who campaigned so feverishly over the summer. We want to give special thanks to the local media outlets and organizations (local network affiliates, sports radio, Richmond Times Dispatch, Richmond Sports Backers, Greater Richmond Chamber of Commerce, Virginia Commonwealth University, University of Richmond, Retail Merchants Association, and others) who helped in this endeavor to bring tennis to the forefront of our community.
Thanks also to the power of social media networking and the Internet, we enjoyed the support of the USTA/Mid-Atlantic Section, USTA/Virginia, the Washington Kastles World Team Tennis organization, and community tennis associations and clubs from around the nation---from the Canyon Creek Women’s Racquet Club in Dallas, TX, to the Roseville Community Tennis Association in Granite Bay, CA.
So, raise your rackets in a salute to Richmond—officially now the thrid Best Tennis Town in America!
