[weglot_switcher]
Leaving Argentina today for Brazil. I had a very productive few days in the beautiful city of Buenos Aires. Argentina is a wonderful country with such a great tradition in tennis.
I met with the Tennis Federation which is being run by two former top men’s players, Agustin Calleri, the President, and Mariano Zaballetta. I was impressed with the work they are doing under quite challenging economic circumstances.
Argentina continues to produce top players because it has great clubs, very educated and experienced coaches and a lot of talent but its distance from international tournaments and its economic difficulties makes it quite difficult to continue as one of the top nations. This trip reinforced what I knew from previous travel to this region. The 10 countries are so different, facing different challenges and so require different forms of support from the ITF.
Agustin has put in place a great team in the federation and I am convinced he is on the right path. I appreciated being able to share my ideas and vision and to listen to his view on the future of international tennis and the ITF. I learned a lot.
I ended last night with a dinner and some great Argentinian red wine with my good friend and former Davis Cup player and captain, Gustavo Luza.
Next up Florianopolis.
