Take talented young tennis players, add clay courts and sunshine, and you get the ITF Junior Tournament in Beaulieu-sur-mer. For a week, junior category players (under 18) competed for the prestigious victory.
Two great finals on Sunday
In the women’s category, it was Ukrainian Kovalets who won after an epic final. She overcame Russian Putintseva in three sets and nearly three hours of play (7-5, 5-7, 6-3). A long and highly contested match to the delight of the large crowd. The young Russian saved three match points in the second set to eventually win it and push the Ukrainian into a third set. But the consistency of Kovalets made the difference in the end, for a well-deserved victory.
For the men, it was Spanish Carlos Boluda Perquis who created a sensation by defeating Czech Vesely, the tournament’s number 1 seed and 14th in the junior world rankings, in the final. After a highly contested first set where the Spaniard executed some brilliant shots, he easily won the second set for a victory 7-6, 6-0. Boluda also took home the sportsmanship trophy thanks to impeccable behavior throughout the week.
The assessment of Roger Roux, mayor of Beaulieu-sur-mer
“The outcome is positive, especially with the sponsorship of Guy Forget who came on site. By saying it was the place to discover tomorrow’s youth, he summed up this tournament well. A large number of people attended, and the weather was exceptional. The women’s final was highly contested. I am more than satisfied. This success is a testament to the good organization and the harmony between the association and the federation.”
