The first ever ‘touchtennis’ tournament for Scottish university and college students is going to be held on campus at Stirling.
Organised by a group of MSc Sport Management students, the ‘Varsity Cup’ will be held at the Gannochy National Tennis Centre on Sunday, March 26.
Entries are open now and will close on March 17 – the organisers are looking for mixed teams of two boys and two girls.
Touchtennis was founded in 2002 by a man called Rashid, when he set up the game in his back garden to entertain his daughter.
From there, the sport has grown and become very popular, with a Varsity Cup England tournament played in London at the end of last year.
As part of an event management module, the MSc students – Nicole Petursdottir, Stephanie Smith, Nick Mckelvey, Graeme Hope, Kamran Khan and Gao Yile – wanted to try and replicate the event’s success north of the border.
Touchtennis is a simplified version of actual tennis, with smaller equipment and court sizes and softer balls.
One of the organisers’ event objectives is to increase participation in recreational sport, and believe touchtennis something anyone from beginners to elite professionals can play.
The tournament will consist of a group-stage round robin format, followed by knockout rounds. There will also be fundraiser activities, including raffle prizes to win.
Cash prizes, medals and trophies are also up for the teams who finish 1st, 2nd and 3rd.
The organisers also say if students are only able to form a team of two or three, they can still enter.
Anyone can enter as long as they are a student at a Scottish university or college.
Anyone interested in representing their university at the event can go to a touchtennis workshop on Monday, March 20, from 1-3pm.
To enter or volunteer, please email info@scotunitouchtennis.com.
So far the organisers have had interest from Stirling University, Queen Margaret University and Abertay University, and are hoping to secure more interest over the new few weeks.
Command and control event officer Nick Mckelvey said: “Touchtennis is a great fun way to get people involved in sport, who wouldn’t normally get involved in the competitive side of things.
“The recreational competition side of the sport is something that we really want to promote and it has allowed us to turn a serious competition into something a bit more fun and engaging for all levels.”
Featured image credit: Pexels.com
