Israel Tennis Centers
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| Formation | 1976 |
|---|---|
| Type | Sports – Tennis, Children's Charity |
| Headquarters | Ramat HaSharon, Israel |
| Location | |
Israel Tennis Centers ("ITC"; Hebrew: המרכז לטניס בישראל) is the largest social service agency for children in Israel, serving more than a half million children and their families since its first center opened in Ramat Hasharon in 1976. With 14 centers on the country, primarily in underprivileged communities, the not-for-profit Centers use tennis to promote the social, physical, and psychological well being of their students (through other programs such as their Life Skills program). Another of its goals is the development of coaches (such as Oded Yaakov), and building and maintaining courts and facilities at the highest levels.
The ITC is the physical home of the Israel Children's Centers, Israel's largest social service agency for children. The Israel Children's Centers serve 10,000 children every week through a variety of programs that address development and social needs, including coexistence programs for Arab and Jewish children and customized programs for a variety of disabilities.
The ITC has to date produced the following top-30 players: Andy Ram (career-high doubles ranking of No. 5); Yoni Erlich (doubles ranking of No. 5); Shahar Pe'er (doubles ranking of No. 14 and singles ranking of No. 11); Anna Smashnova (singles ranking of No. 15); Amos Mansdorf (singles ranking of No. 18); Shlomo Glickstein (singles ranking of No. 22 in 1982; No. 28 in doubles); Dudi Sela (singles ranking of No. 30 in 2009), and Harel Levy (singles ranking of No. 30 in 2001).
In 1974, at a time when tennis in Israel was a sport played primarily by tourists as beach hotels, Dr. Ian Froman, Freddie Krivine, Joseph D. Shane, Harold Landesberg, Rubin Josephs, and Dr. William H. Lippy began fundraising efforts to launch tennis as a sport in Israel and to build a National Tennis Center on an old strawberry patch in Ramat HaSharon given to the ITC by the government. On April 25, 1976, Leah Rabin cut the ribbon to the Center, and 250 children signed up to participate. Canadian pioneers of the Centers included Joseph Frieberg, Gerry Goldberg, Ralph Halbert, and Harold Green. Their fundraising efforts laid the financial foundation for Canada Stadium, where the Davis Cup and Fed Cup were hosted in Israel until 2009, and the construction and maintenance of the centers, as well as provision of equipment to the children, were funded without any government assistance.
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