Tennis Cambodia’s technical director Braen Aneiros and head of junior development Mam Phalkun will be among 20 coaches and national coordinators from across Asian attending the International Tennis Federation’s Junior Tennis Initiative workshop to be held in Bangkok from next Monday.

The four-day event is part of the ITF’s pivot towards junior development with the aim of creating simple competitive formats and activity progressions covering key regions of the world in a series of six such workshops, the first of which was held in late October 2013 for the East African nations hosted by Burundi.

ITF participation officer Tim Jones and development officer for Asia Suresh Menon will jointly direct the workshop, designed to raise the standard of national 14 and under programs.

According to the ITF, these interactive sessions with national JTI coordinators are to build their knowledge base in specific aspects of tennis development and raise the standard of delivery to attract more players into the game.

Tennis Cambodia has a smooth running JTI in place with player participation showing steady growth.

Up to 2,500 students from 20 schools and six orphanages are going through various grassroots programs countrywide under the watch of 17 dedicated coaches, making Cambodia a leading proponent of junior development in Asia.

“I strongly believe that JTI is a clear pathway for player development and that’s the reason why we have directed so much of our energy, effort and resources in strengthening it,” Tennis Cambodia secretary-general Tep Rithivit said.

“I feel that a workshop like the one Braen Aneiros and Mam Phalkun are attending will be a highly rewarding experience for them.”

Aneiros yesterday told the Post: “I am looking forward to this workshop. It is good to share our knowledge and experience with coaches and coordinators from other countries in the region.”