Contact the ITF Juniors Department if you have any questions about playing the ITF World Junior events. Here is a brief explanation of the various levels of play.
Group A: Includes the 4 Grand Slams, 4 additional events on 4 different continents: Banana Bowl (Brazil), Italian International Junior Championships, Super Junior Championships of Japan, Orange Bowl, (USA).
Group 1: Large, well attended events, sometimes the week before the Group A events, or the only major event of a regional circuit.
Group 2: Strong event with not as strong of players as the Group 1 players.
Group 3: Fairly strong, although top players unlikely to play.
Group 4: Made up of players with a low world ranking and possibly no ranking at all.
Group 5: Newcomers to the ITF events with a very, very low ITF ranking or no ranking.
Group B-1: Regional closed championships: the continent with the highest ranked players (Europe).
Group B-2: Regional closed championships: the continent with the second highest ranked players.
Group B-3: Regional closed championships: players having low or no rankings (Africa).
Group C: Team Championships: Continental Players Cup (USA)
The Inside Scoop: Most players of any ranking travel with funding from their National Associations or as part of National Association teams. Few players are funded by sponsorship deals to assist, but this is certainly a possibility. Players who play group 3, 4 and 5 events usually fund themselves.
The ITF has various traveling teams, funded by the Grand Slam Development Fund. The highest of which is the A Team that travels throughout Europe in the summer, these are made up of players in the top 35 from less developed tennis nations. The ITF pays for travel, accommodation and team coaches. The ITF also provides grants to a few players on application.
If you have any further questions about these very important developmental events which provide the necessary exposure against foreign players as well as much needed experience on the red clay of Europe, contact the ITF Juniors Department. Or, to receive a copy of the schedule of the World Junior ITF events, contact the ITF Juniors Department.
