SF Tennis Freak

Archive for the ‘Video’ Category

I have a few Italian friends (i.e. Italian from Italy) and have always loved their expressiveness. So when I heard that there were USGO participants from Italy, I did my best to grab one of them for my player interview series.

Today’s player Interview features Paolo De Angelis from Rome.  Paolo made the decision to play in the USGO because it was voted the GLTA’s Best Large Tournament  for 2012. Timing is everything, however, and mine wasn’t the best since our interview came on the heels of a first-round loss in singles.  Even so, he was gracious in defeat and was glad he made the trip.

This translation is courtesy of Bing Translator, and I hope it’s correct: È stato un piacere incontrare e parlare con voi, Paolo. Grazie per il vostro tempo e la generosità. 🙂 (It was a pleasure meeting and talking with you, Paolo. Thanks for your time and generosity.)

Note: The off-camera voice is a friend of Paolo’s who was on hand for any necessary translations. Paolo was worried about his English, but he was great. It’d be a very different story, however, if the interview shoe was on the other foot and I had to speak Italian…

Now that the king and queen of clay have been crowned in Paris, the tennis world turns its’ attention to the famed grass courts of London.

London is also the home of Jonathan South and Patrick Holzen, tournament directors for the Tennis London International Championships, and the featured players in today’s USGO player interview video.

Partners in crime for the past 15 years, Jonathan and Patrick were extremely gracious with their time as we discussed topics ranging from the USGO and their own GLTA tournament to the gay marriage debate going on right now in Parliament.

I had a wonderful time with them, and hope that comes across in the video. (Hopefully they had a great time with the interview too.)
Enjoy!

(For more information on the Tennis London International Championships, here’s a link to the their tournament website: http://tennislondon.com/tournament/)

With this year’s USGO boasting, perhaps, its’ first lone female tournament director*, it seemed only fitting to grab Ember Harker, the Gay and Lesbian Tennis Federation’s first female president, for a player interview.

I remember when Ember first came on the scene.  In fact, she was on my winning WTT “Team Meerkats” at the 2007 USGO. (Look for the Team Meerkat photo below the video.) What I remember most about Ember back then, besides cute matching outfits, was a great smile and gracious personality.  Those same traits followed her onto the GLTF Board of Directors and, ultimately, the presidency.

These days she’s no longer on the GLTF Board, and enjoying her time as a private tennis citizen. But she’s still appreciative of her time on the board, and proud of the contributions she was able to make to the organization. (I second that pride!)

So sit back and enjoy my chat with Ember.

* – There’s a good chance that there has been a previous female director for the USGO. Will research this item for a future update.)

Team Meerkat

Jarrett Zarate, a USGO participant from San Diego CA, caught my eye early on at this year’s tournament. Sure he’s tall and good-looking, but that’s not what got my attention. Every time I saw him I couldn’t help but think, “Marinko Matosevic!” I didn’t find anyone who agreed with me (and Jarrett had never even heard of him), but I stand by my assertion!

Even though he was getting ready for World Team Tennis, Jarrett graciously agreed to be interviewed for my site. We chatted about a variety of subjects, including a special spectator that was in attendance for his matches. But I’ll let you hear about that from him in his interview.

Once again the wind sound against my phone is problematic, and way more noticeable than I’d like.  But it’ll have to do until I build a soundstage.  🙂
Enjoy!

While doing bag checks at this year’s USGO, it occurred to me that I might as well take this opportunity one step further and learn more about the participants in this year’s tournament by doing a more formal interview.

Matt was the willing volunteer for my first bag check, and a fitting choice for my first player interview. He’s funny and outgoing, which made it easy. The sound levels are a little off, and you can hear the wind starting to pick up as we talked. But I still think it came out okay.
Hope you enjoy it.

A unique aspect of the United States Gay Open (USGO) is the inclusion of a World Team Tennis event in lieu of mixed doubles (or no mixed play at all). Over the years, this WTT event has been a great way to integrate the men and women in a team format that’s designed specifically for fun, along with an equal opportunity for everyone to do well.

Last year’s successful “Hunger Games”-inspired event was a big hit; featuring great costumes, wacky props, and quality tennis. This year’s “Survivor” edition looked to continue the USGO tradition of good times/good tennis. The man behind “Survivor” tennis is Gordon Crenshaw, a new-ish member of the GLTF who’s jumped headfirst into volunteering for club events.
Get to know Gordon in this short video that I shot during today’s final action at the USGO.