Thea ready, raring to play in New Caledonia

CNMI junior netter Thea Minor will leave Fiji for New Caledonia this weekend to participate in a training camp and tournament in We Lifou in the Provincial Islands of the French territory.

In an email to the Saipan Tribune, Thea through her mother Joy, said she is expecting to meet tough foes in New Caledonia, but she had been practicing hard in Fiji in the past two weeks to withstand the pressure in her next tournament.

Minor is among the six junior tennis players in the Pacific who will be playing in Ligue Caledonienne de Tennis’ the “Games Interprovinciaux.”

The tournament will feature junior players from New Caledonia’s three provinces, which are represented by three associations, namely North of the Province Tennis, South of the Province Tennis, and the Provincial Islands Tennis. We Lifou will host the tournament, which will be held after a tennis camp next week.

CNMI coach Jeff Race in an earlier interview said that training at the New Caledonia camp is much tougher than the one at the Dr. Robin Mitchell Regional Training Center in Lautoka, and Minor will learn a lot from it.

Race said the training in New Caledonia starts as early as 5am and players practice three times a day with the last two held during lunch break and after school hours.

Minor is expected to hold her ground in the camp and in the actual tournament after training at RTC for more than month and playing two tournaments in Fiji.

The 13-year-old Minor competed and placed third in the 2008 Pacific Oceania Junior Championships and also finished third in the pool play in the Oceania Plate.

While her teammates returned to Saipan after the two tournaments in Fiji, Minor stayed in Lautoka to prepare for the competition in New Caledonia.

Her last week of training in Fiji focused more on footwork and mental preparations.

“She is doing well in her training in Fiji. The people at the training center are taking care of her,” said Joy.

“We are very proud, happy, and excited for Thea for having an opportunity to compete in New Caledonia. This off-island competition will really help improve her game and confidence,” the elder Minor said.

After the tournament in New Caledonia, Thea will return to Saipan late this month.

When asked if Thea will return to Fiji in the near future for a scholarship and to continue her training at RTC, Joy said she and her husband, Boyet, still need to discuss the matter with their daughter.

“We still need to talk to Thea if she wants to stay in Fiji for one year,” Joy said.

Thea and CNMI top 18-and-under player Ji Hoon Heao received an invitation to train and study in Fiji for one year after their impressive performances in the POJC in the past two stagings of the annual tournament.

Thea made it into the semifinals of the POJC in 2007, earning a spot on the Pacific Touring Team, which competed in several tournaments in New Zealand in December last year.

Heo, who had back-to-back runner-up finishes in the POJC (2007-2008), was also part of the Pacific Touring Team and participated in tournaments in Australia early this year.