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Heo gets coveted ITF ranking
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Posted on Dec 31 2008
Ji Hoon Heo just gets getting better and better and last year was no exception as 2008 saw the tennis phenom reach another milestone by getting in the ITF junior rankings.
The 16-year-old Marianas High School student did the trick last June after he and doubles partner Lorenzo Pineda of Vanuatu reached the quarterfinals in the 2008 Open Junior BNP Paribas de Nouvelle Caledonie in Noumea.
The New Caledonia tournament also saw Heo reach the Round of 16 in the singles division before losing 6-1, 6-0 to Vaitea Lo of Tahiti on account on an ankle injury.
A hobbling Heo and Pineda eventually had to forfeit their match against Olivier Lemaitre and Sylver Schorge of New Caledonia. Heo, however, got 15 points for reaching the quarters before bidding adieu to the French territory.
Heo was ranked 1,425 following his New Caledonia stint but he failed to move up in the rankings after lukewarm performances in ITF junior tournaments in Japan and the Philippines later in the year.
“This year definitely has had its up and downs. I was at my peak in New Caledonia and I nearly beat a guy that was ranked No. 300 in the world then I got my ankle injury and then couldn’t play. I had some confidence issues and the ankle issue kept bugging me. But this year, I learned many things from many people by traveling a lot. I had many wins and losses and learned a lot through my losses. I will use all the experience I got from 2008 and try to use it during 2009. I think 2009 will be great and 2008 really prepared me for the next year,” he said.
Heo, however, vowed not to rest on his laurels and is already outlining his goals for 2009.
“I’ve always wanted to be ranked in the world and its just great I finally did it but my New Year’s resolution is to make it into the Top 400 in the world and I will do my best to achieve that goal. I really need support from Saipan in order to achieve and I hope I could receive a lot of support. For 2009, I will try to play more than 10 ITF-sanctioned tournaments and try gaining a better ranking,” he said.
