The First Niagara Family Classic will take place at Middlesex Club on Saturday and feature local families competing to earn a spot in the Regional Tournament and eventually the First Niagara family Classic Finals, to take place Aug. 23 in conjunction with the New Haven Open at Yale, presented by First Niagara.
The tournament will feature Father/Child and Mother/Child 12 & Under, 14 & Under and 18 & Under age divisions, a Parent/Child Open division for anyone over the age of 19 and a division for Husband/Wife teams. This year will also feature a Parent/Child Open division for kids 10 and under. This is a new division that follows the USTA 10 & under tennis initiative which uses the Quickstart format.
“We’re really looking forward to this year’s tournament and are excited about the expansion of the program to include more families,” said David Ring, New England region president for First Niagara. “Our goal is to teach children the importance of exercise, while giving them the opportunity to play tennis on a big stage with the involvement and support of their families.”
Winning teams in each division will join top teams from other First Niagara Family Classic Local Events at the Regional Tournament, to be held July 21-22 at Yale University. The winners of the Regional Tournament will then have the opportunity to compete alongside some of the world’s best tennis players at the New Haven Open at Yale on Thursday, Aug. 23.
In 2011, from January through July, more than 5,000 participants competed in 85 local events at tennis facilities throughout Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island and Vermont. The event, now in its 12th year, has seen participation grow exponentially.
For more information, visit www.newhavenopen.com or call 1-855-464-8366. Also, make sure to join New Haven Open on Facebook and Twitter for tournament updates, contests and more.
