Merchiston Tennis Academy pupil is presented national award for commitment and performance

Matthew R, who has been a member of the Merchiston Tennis Academy for two years, has been awarded the prestigious Raymond Miquel Award 2017.

Matthew comments: "I feel extremely honoured and privileged to have received the Raymond Miquel Award from Tennis Scotland. There has been so many fantastic past winners of this award and it feels special to have my name on this trophy alongside them. The help and support I have received from my coaches David Brewer and Nathan Lundy has been incredible since I started at the Tennis Academy in August 2015. I have also always received great support and encouragement from everyone at Merchiston Castle School."

Every year, one U12 male and female player is awarded this honour as an acknowledgement of their hard work and dedication to tennis over the past year. The award ceremony was held at Gleneagles Hotel, Perthshire, where Matthew was presented his award by Professor Miquel himself.

Matthew R is currently ranked number one U14 player in Scotland and number 68 in the UK. He has won several grades for events throughout the U12s and now U14 age group. Matthew has also represented Scotland and been invited to LTA training camps down in London.

Director of Tennis Academy, David Brewer comments: “We are delighted for Matthew to receive this award. It's great that his hard work and determination have been recognised. He joins a list of great players to have gained the Miquel Award, so it is a fantastic achievement.”

Merchiston Tennis Academy is currently ranked number two tennis school in the world, after its performance at the ISF Tennis World School Championships in Brazil earlier this year.

Merchiston established Scotland’s first Tennis Academy in 2007 with 13 players. Since then it has grown to around twice that size. These players attend Merchiston, where they pursue both a bespoke academic timetable and a world class tennis programme. The Tennis Academy provides player pathways from top county level players to junior grand slam level. Students join the Tennis Academy by invitation, after passing an assessment.

Merchiston has developed a programme which enables pupils to combine an excellent education with unrivalled on-court opportunities, which include top quality coaching, all-encompassing sports science provision (with our Institute of Sport Scotland partners) and appropriate level tournament travel. With individually tailored tennis programmes, the standards set by the players and coaches are of the highest level, whilst still maintaining enjoyment of the game. Our experience shows that our boarding school set-up is highly successful in preparing individuals for life as a professional athlete, while still enjoying childhood to the full.