Raising funds to provide free tennis activity sessions for people experiencing mental ill health, learning, sensory and physical disabilities.
In June, Robyn Moore completed a monumental tennis challenge on behalf of Bright Ideas for Tennis, Breakpoint 2019. Her target was to hit 200,000 tennis shots throughout the month. Putting this in to perspective, she had to hit 1 shot every 4 seconds for 8 hours a day, for 30 consecutive days. In doing so, Robyn visited 47 venues across the UK, starting in her home town of Fleet on the 1st June, travelling all the way up to Glasgow and Edinburgh, before finishing at the AELTC Community Sports Ground on the 30th.
En route, the Breakpoint Tour visited a wide selection of venues including parks, schools, tennis clubs, SEN schools, pre Wimbledon exhibition events and ATP/WTA Pro Tournaments. Robyn, who suffers from PTSD herself, was aiming to raise awareness of the benefits of sport to anyone with a mental health condition, and to raise funds in order to provide free weekly tennis sessions for a variety of disability groups, but with a particular focus on mental well-being.
She explains the relevance of the 200,000 shots as follows; “I estimated the length of the tennis court as 25 metres. So hitting 200,000 shots means striking the ball 5 million meters. This equates to 1 meter for every adult in the UK that is suffering with a mental health condition. I am happy to admit that tennis probably saved my life and now I want to raise funds that will allow others in a similar situation to me, the opportunity to use tennis as a tool to help them on the road to recovery too” Many famous tennis players showed their support throughout June including Tim Henman, Lucy Shuker, Pat Cash, and Richard Krajicek. Robyn was also overwhelmed by the support from the clubs. Each venue staged a variety of events to support Breakpoint 2019, ranging from kids tournaments, adult cardio classes, tennis marathons, and disability sessions.
It was very important to all involved in the challenge to emphasise the benefits that the social side of tennis brings. Tennis has been scientifically proven to reduce stress levels, and to decrease anxiety. It allows participants to make new friends, feel less isolated, and most importantly to have fun. If you, or anyone that you know would benefit from our free weekly tennis sessions, please get in touch by emailing danny@brightideasfortennis.org
