Bianca Andreescu’s historic U.S. Open win captured the imaginations of millions of Canadians but perhaps few were as invested as the country’s young tennis hopefuls.
Several young players were watching in Montreal on Saturday as Andreescu defeated Serena Williams to become the first Canadian to ever win a Grand Slam title.
“I was screaming. We were all happy, all celebrating,” said 13-year-old Tiarah Weekes. “It was nice to see her win.”
Several players were out to work on their game at Jarry Park’s IGA Stadium a day after the match. Maya Visan said she learned some important lessons from watching Andreescu.
“It was amazing, really good, she fought all the way through. She stayed calm the entire match,” she said. “It gave me inspiration and it makes me feel happy.”
Tennis Canada vice president Eugene Lapierre said the champion will serve as a role model for future generations.
“It’s amazing because that’s what we want, we want our top athletes to serve as models so the kids can try to imitate them,” he said. “We see the numbers, participation grew continuously in Canada over the last few years.”
