Court of Dreams gives people with disabilities an opportunity to play tennis at US Open

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NEW YORK (AP) — Long before Aryna Sabalenka and Amanda Anisimova began play in the U.S. Open women’s final Saturday, there were different players on the courts.

Earlier that morning, while the grounds were still quiet, children and adults with disabilities were the ones in the spotlight at Flushing Meadows. They learned the basics of tennis, from how to volley to how to hit a backhand, and put them on display at the Court of Dreams clinic.

The clinic is put on through a partnership between the USTA and the Beautiful Lives Project, an organization dedicated to providing people with disabilities opportunities to participate in sports and activities.

“If you watch them, they’re getting better and better with each shot,” said Tony Gionfriddo, executive director of the Beautiful Lives Project. “And they probably never had this opportunity before. Now they know when they go home that they can say, ‘I played tennis.’ And maybe this will push them to the next step and to continue learning.”

It was the group's third year hosting this event, and interest continues to grow. Gionfriddo said there were around 100 participants this year, up substantially from previous attendance of about 50.

And for many, that access to tennis has a big impact. Twin 8-year-olds Skarlett and Skylar Scott have recently begun playing tennis, and their family is seeing a difference in their behavior.

“I have seen so much improvement in their motor function, their ability to follow multistep directions and their ability just to follow through on a task,” said their mother, Natasha Scott. “I love this clinic.”

The Beautiful Lives Project was founded by Bryce Weiler and Anthony Iacovone in 2017. Weiler, who is blind, was inspired to create something like this after his own experience with the University of Evansville men's basketball team greatly affected his life.

“It gave me the opportunity to be around college basketball and to be surrounded by people who believed in me and wanted to help me have success in life,” Weiler said. “I wanted to help other individuals with disabilities to be able to live their dreams, to create lifelong friendships with others and to show that all people with disabilities need in life is an opportunity.”

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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis