Have you ever wondered what it feels like to be part of a sports team? Well, what are you waiting for? Join the tennis team! I interviewed both tennis coaches, Coach Bao and Coach Nick, to share their experiences working with the tennis team and some of their insights. Here is the conversation with Coach Bao and Coach Nick.

Coach Bao

When I asked Coach Bao what made him decide to become a tennis coach, he said that he had played tennis since high school when he was here at Renton High, and he has always loved every aspect of the sport! He enjoyed sharing his knowledge and helping others improve, but coaching at his old high school was never on his radar. Going in, he didn’t know what to expect when coaching high school students, as he mostly coached one-on-one with adults. But let him tell you, coaching students is the most rewarding thing he has done. All of his players inspire him to continue coaching, and if he could do it over again, he would have started many years ago. What he enjoys the most about being a tennis coach is watching everyone improve, having fun, and developing friendships with each other. Mostly he enjoys seeing everyone outside playing a sport that he loves. His goal as a tennis coach is to get as many students involved in sports as possible, not just tennis, but any sport. Sports play such an important part in our lives because they test us mentally and physically. He hopes that everyone who plays on the tennis team will continue to play long after they have graduated from high school. Coach Bao’s advice to future tennis players is, “Tennis, like many other aspects of your life, requires you to put in the work to get the best results. Don’t compare yourself to others; compare yourself to the person you were the day before. Small steps lead to big accomplishments if you believe in yourself and work hard.” All of this advice can be applied to anything you do in life. Additional things he wanted to add were to enjoy your life, hang out with friends and family, do things that make you happy, and most importantly, go outside and hit some tennis balls!

Coach Nick

During my conversation with Coach Nick, I asked him what made him decide to become a tennis coach. He answered that he has loved playing tennis since he was eight years old, and he thinks that coaching is the best way to share his love of tennis with others. He also shared that he enjoys coaching because he can see the progress that everyone makes throughout the season and the growth from year to year. He said his goals as a coach are to help his students’ progress in their tennis skills and provide an after-school environment for people to have fun while also challenging themselves. His advice to future tennis players is, “Learning something new can be frustrating. My advice would be to keep practicing and not worry about wins and losses. If you keep practicing, you WILL get better.” Lastly, he wants to remind us that when we are playing tennis, we should have FUN!

In summary, Coach Bao and Coach Nick have extensive experience playing tennis from a young age, and both coaches are passionate about instructing beginner and advanced players. If you are interested, we look forward to seeing you on the tennis team next school year! Boys’ tennis is in the fall, and girls’ tennis is in the spring.

Sources:

• Coach Bao

• Coach Nick