Tennis My Story

THEME MUSIC PLAYS

This story belongs to Joe and his Daddy Peter.

It's a tiny tale about Daddy Peter's life and love of tennis.

-Are you ready?

-Yeah.

-Can you catch it?

-Yep.

-You want a high one?

-No.

-Catch. Yeah! Cool!

You've got to watch the ball.

You've got to watch the ball. Good one.

-This is a really high one, OK?

-OK, Dad.

-Are you ready?

Ohh!

Great one!

And now it's time for Daddy Peter

to take Joe on a journey of discovery

and share his memories of when he was younger.

Joe, his little sister Evie

and Daddy Peter are going for a ride on their bikes.

Wow! Those bikes are cool, and they're all very different.

-I'm in the lead!

-You're in the lead. You're winning. Yes.

I love riding my bike.

I love riding my bike, too, cos it keeps you good and fit, doesn't it?

-And it's good fun.

-Daddy, did you have a bike when you were little?

I did have a bike, yes. And I kept falling off it, actually.

THEY LAUGH

I loved riding my bicycle. I used to cycle miles.

I used to cycle a long way,

but then when I got old enough, I had a motorbike.

-But do you know what happened when I had my motorbike?

-You fell off.

I know. How silly was that? I broke my back, didn't I?

And now I can't play football with you properly,

but we can play lots of other sports. What sports do you like playing, Joe?

-I like playing rugby...

-Do you like football?

-..and basketball.

-Basketball?

-And football and cricket.

-And do you like tennis?

-Yeah.

Tennis is fantastic. Daddy likes playing tennis.

Can you teach me how to play tennis?

I can teach you how to play tennis. High-five. Cool.

But what exactly is tennis?

Tennis is a sport that has been played for many, many years.

Look at these old pictures.

They use racquets, a net and balls.

The most famous tournament played is called Wimbledon

and here is the British player Andy Murray winning it.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

Well done, Andy!

Daddy Peter plays wheelchair tennis, which is very, very similar.

-COMMENTATOR:

-He's done very well.

I started playing tennis

because I saw a demonstration at Stoke Mandeville Hospital.

I'd been looking for a different sport cos I tried basketball,

I tried table tennis and none of them really took my fancy

and then I saw wheelchair tennis and it was brilliant!

Daddy Peter is very good at wheelchair tennis.

He's played in many tournaments all around the world.

He's won lots of gold medals.

Some of these gold medals were from the Paralympic Games.

This is a big competition for people with all kinds of disabilities,

including lots of competitors who play their sport in wheelchairs.

Daddy Peter and Joe are going to look

at some of the different wheelchairs at his shop.

Do you know, when I was first in a wheelchair,

I had a really heavy chair and I could barely push it.

I could just about lift it and get it into my car.

But now we have really fast, lightweight chairs, like this one,

and this is the one I play tennis in.

We could go and play tennis and I can play tennis

-in this chair with you.

-Yes.

-And I'd be faster than you.

-No, you won't.

-Are you going to wear your trainers?

I'll wear my trainers and I bet I'll be really fast.

Daddy Peter is so fast on the tennis court

because his wheelchair is specially built.

So there are lots of different types of wheelchairs.

There's Daddy's tennis chair.

There are basketball wheelchairs

and then there are racing bikes, hand bikes.

And here, this is where we fix wheelchairs as well.

Every time a wheelchair breaks,

we can take it into the workshop and we fix it.

-Shall we go and fix Daddy's chair in the workshop?

-Yes.

Great! High-five. Good job! Let's go.

So, Daddy Peter and Joe are off to fix one of Daddy's chairs.

I hope it isn't too badly broken.

-So put that one into that screw there.

-At the bottom?

Yeah. Put it in there. Have you got it?

OK. So that comes out. Keep it in there.

-You mean this?

-Yeah.

-Which one do you want in?

-That's it. Turn it.

-This way?

-That's it. Very good. Yeah.

-Really tight?

-Yeah, really tight. Well done.

-High-five. Good boy.

-Now, are we going to play tennis?

Yeah. Well done.

Well done, Joe. That's the chair all fixed.

Now for some tennis practice to prepare for the big match.

Joe, when Daddy first started playing tennis,

which was a long time ago,

for me to be good, I had to have a teacher.

If you want to be good, you have to have a teacher, a coach.

-The coaches you have play tennis.

-Can you be my tennis coach?

I'd love to be your tennis coach. Let's go and play. Cool!

Bounce and hit. Hit.

Mummy Linda is here

to help Joe and Daddy Peter with their tennis practice.

Great hit! Fantastic. Bounce and hit.

Bounce, hit. Yeah. See? You're better this side.

Bounce and hit. Bounce, hit.

Fantastic. Bounce, hit.

See? You haven't missed a ball this way.

You're better this side than the other side.

Move your feet.

Brilliant!

That's brilliant, Joe. You're hitting the ball really well.

That's it, Joe. Keep practising and maybe one day

you'll be a gold medal winner, just like your daddy.

Great hit!

Joe and his family are off to a very special place

in the world of tennis.

This is the All England Lawn Tennis Club

which is where the Wimbledon Tennis Tournament takes place.

Many tennis competitions take place here

and there are lots and lots of tennis courts.

Today is a very special day for Daddy Peter.

One of his gold medals has been displayed at Wimbledon for some time

and today he will be given it back to keep.

Hello, Peter. I'm delighted to be able

-to return this medal to you.

-Thank you very much.

My most favourite medal. I won it in 2004.

-Did you know that?

-OK.

-OK.

I won Great Britain's very first tennis gold medal.

Many famous tennis players from all over the world

come to Wimbledon to compete in competitions.

Look - there's Andy Murray who we saw winning the competition earlier.

Tough and strong.

It looks like Joe is trying to get some tips.

Wimbledon is also famous for its strawberries and cream

and they are the perfect thing to eat

while watching the tennis in the warm sun.

Save some for me though!

Wimbledon strawberries always taste better.

Now it's time for Joe and Daddy Peter

to play an actual tennis match.

Daddy Peter is fast, but Joe has been watching Andy Murray

and getting some tips, so this is going to be a close game.

Who do you think will win?

We're going to have a game of tennis, OK? Now, before you start,

you have to do the coin toss to decide which end you have.

So, which side would you like?

-Heads or tails?

-Tails?

-Tails? Are you sure?

Are you positive? OK, here we go. Which one is it?

-Tails.

-Ahh! You won again.

OK, you serve first, and here's the ball.

-Are you going to serve?

-Yes!

-OK.

And look - there's Mummy Linda and Evie to cheer them on.

-Come on, Andy Murray, come on!

-I'm not Andy Murray.

Come on. Ooh! I'm going to get it. I'm chasing it down.

Chase, chase, chase, chase!

Go on, Andy Murray!

Ohh!

Ooh, I've got. Go on. Hit!

THEY LAUGH

-Come on, Daddy!

-Come on, Joe!

-Whoa! I've got it, I've got it!

-No, you haven't!

That's mine!

Good serve! Put it there. It's got it over.

Oh, that's too good.

-Ha-ha!

-Put it over there.

What a shot by the world champion!

Set...game point, and he's got it.

Oh, what a shot back! What a shot back!

-Did I win again?

-Yes.

I won again!

High-five.

Give me a hug. You were too good.

Well done.

Thank you for telling me stories about tennis.

And thank you for being a brilliant boy and playing tennis with me

and listening to all my stories.

Can you remember all the special things we did together?

-We played catch.

-Good one. This is a really high one, OK?

-OK, Dad.

-Ready?

Ohh! Great one!

-We played on our bikes.

-I'm in the lead!

You're in the lead. You're winning.

We looked at different types of wheelchairs.

And this is the one I played tennis in.

I helped you fix a wheelchair at the workshop.

-This way?

-That's it. Very good, yeah.

-Really tight?

-Yeah, really tight.

I went to Wimbledon to get your gold medal.

-My most favourite medal and I won it in 2004.

-OK.

Did you know that?

And we had strawberries and cream.

-We had a lot of fun playing a tennis match.

-Chase!

Go on, Andy Murray!

Ohh!

I learned how to start tennis by serving a tennis ball.

I even learned how to return the ball back over the net.

Oh, my word!

-Did I win again?

-Yes.

-I won again!

What was your favourite thing?

My favourite thing was spending all that time with you today

teaching you how to play tennis. And who won?

-Me.

-I know, but I loved it. I thought it was brilliant.

I'm going to have to show you all my medals and how I play tennis.

Can I have a big hug and a kiss? Thank you.

Thank you very much.

What a fabulous heap of fun.

That was Joe's and Daddy Peter's tiny tale about tennis.

And now that Daddy Peter has shared his story with Joe,

it's time for Joe to start his own story.

Do you know someone who has a story to share?