[TORONTO, ON] April 9, 2024 – The next generation of Canadian tennis superstars have spent the last two weeks competing in the Fischer Indoor Junior Nationals with champions being crowned in the U14 and U18 events this past weekend.
At Sobeys Stadium in Toronto, ON, the U18 event saw British Columbia’s Gabriella Vannessa Lindgren, who was unseeded, break through for a championship run, toppling three seeds en route to her first national title the girls’ singles category. In the finals, she rallied for a 3-6, 6-1, 6-2 victory over runner-up Isabella Marton (No. 5) of Ontario. It’s Vannessa Lindgren’s first career national title. No. 1 seed and National Tennis Centre presented by Rogers athlete Emma si yu Dong of Quebec finished third, defeating Ontario’s Zoya Rosa Chulak 6-4, 6-2. In the doubles field, Lily Rochon and Jacey Tian, both of Ontario, earned four strong victories to capture the title, defeating Quebec’s Dylan Gelber and Samila Jarrah 6-4, 6-7, 10-7 in a closely contested final. Rochon and Tian also teamed up to win the provincial championships in Toronto last March.
Meanwhile, No. 1 seed Nicolas Arsenault of Ontario was dominant from start to finish in the boys’ division, capturing his second career junior nationals title. After defeating his brother and No. 3 seed Mikael 6-3, 64 in the semi-finals, the he toppled runner-up Andres Valentin Ispas of Quebec 6-0, 6-3 in the final. In doubles, the No. 2-seeded pairing of the NTC’s Miko Lapalme of Quebec and Benjamin Azar of Ontario won a tightly contested final, rallying past Quebec’s Alec Barin and Loic Petrecca 5-7, 6-4, 10-7. Lapalme also won both singles and doubles U16 crowns last week in Verdun, QC. Azar of Toronto was a U14 national champion in doubles in 2022.
Hosted at the Salt Spring Island Tennis Centre in Vancouver, BC, the U14 category saw 77 girls and boys take part in singles and doubles play. In girls’ singles, No. 1 seed Amy Shen* of British Columbia was the champion, winning seven total singles matches, closing with a hard fought 3-6, 6-3, 6-0 comeback victory over Rachel Wu, also of BC. Shen was also champion in both singles and doubles at the Indoor Junior Provincials in February. In doubles, Eve Thibault of Quebec and Isabella Ruyu Yan* of Saskatchewan teamed up to capture the title, fighting back to beat No. 2 seeds Alyssa Beltei* of Quebec and Ontario’s Payton Charley Dith* 0-6, 6-4, 10-6 in the final.
Meanwhile, in the boys’ singles division, No. 1 seed Callum Mackinnon* of Ontario had a near flawless run to the title without dropping a set across seven matches. In the finals, he beat runner-up Julian Mahdavi* of Ontario 6-2, 6-3. In doubles, the Quebec pairing of Marc-Edouard L’Allier* and Joachim Marx* won the title, defeating British Columbia’s Luca Vicol* and Alden S.K. Yu* 6-2, 7-5.
The Fischer Indoor Junior Nationals are named after The Green Fischer Family Trust who, in July 2023, made the single-largest donation in Tennis Canada’s history of $3 million.
*Indicates player is a member of the U15 Canadian Prospect Team.
About Tennis Canada
Founded in 1890, Tennis Canada is a non-profit, national sport association with a mission to lead the growth, development and promotion of tennis in Canada and a vision to be a world-leading tennis nation. We value teamwork, passion, integrity, innovation and excellence. Tennis Canada owns and operates the premier National Bank Open presented by Rogers WTA and ATP Tour events, four professional ATP and ITF sanctioned events and financially supports four other professional tournaments in Canada. Tennis Canada operates junior national training centres/programs in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. Tennis Canada is a proud member of the International Tennis Federation, the Canadian Olympic Committee and the Canadian Paralympic Committee, and serves to administer, sponsor and select the teams for Davis Cup, Billie Jean King Cup, the Olympic and Paralympic Games and all wheelchair, junior and senior national teams. Tennis Canada invests its surplus into tennis development. For more information on Tennis Canada please visit our website at: www.tenniscanada.com and follow us on LinkedIn, X, Facebook and Instagram.
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