Hampton Lucy ace Lucia Cassidy off to France to take up full-time tennis training

TALENTED teenager Lucia Cassidy is off to France to further boost her chances of becoming a professional tennis player.

The 14-year-old sensation from Hampton Lucy makes the move across the Channel on 11th July and will be based just outside Cannes.

The King’s High Warwick student has been counting down the days before her move to France for several months and cannot wait for the next chapter in her tennis career.

“We go to France on holiday each summer and I have always tried to compete in some tournaments and do some training while I have been out there,” Cassidy told the Herald.

“Unfortunately, due to there being no national level support available for me from the LTA, my family has had to create this opportunity for me to give me the best chance possible of achieving my dream of becoming a professional tennis player and competing in Grand Slams.

“I am going into full-time training, but due to the United Kingdom no longer being a member of the European Union, it means that I can only be in France for a maximum of 90 days out of 180.

“When I move to France the plan will be to play in some local tournaments initially, so that I can get used to playing on clay again. I recently competed in my first junior ITF tournament and reached the final of the doubles, so now that I have some junior ITF points, my plan is to play in more of these tournaments.”

Cassidy is doing everything she can to become a professional tennis player, but that is not coming at the expense of her education.

“Due to the demands of my tennis schedule, I need to be really flexible in terms of coaching sessions, strength and conditioning sessions, tournaments and so on,” she said.

“Therefore I came to the conclusion that it would be best for me to be home-schooled.

“I have spent a lot of time researching this and I am currently looking into which online schooling provider will help me to achieve the best possible GCSE grades, while at the same time giving me the flexibility I need for my tennis.”