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Axel Nefve
Hinsdale, Illinois
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Elysia Bolton
Lake Forest, Illinois
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Abigail Desiatnikov
Gates Mills, Ohio
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The USTA announced that eight of America’s top young juniors will travel to Europe to represent the United States in two premier 14-and-under events, and three are from the Midwest Section! The two elite events are: Nike Junior International Teen Tennis, January 12-17 in Bolton England, and Les Petits As, January 20-26 in Tarbes, France.
Axel Nefve (13), from Hinsdale, Ill. is one of four boys selected and will be coached by USTA National Coach Jay Devashetty who works out of the USTA Training Center – East in Flushing, N.Y.
Elysia Bolton (13) from Lake Forest, Ill. and Abigail Desiatnikov (12) from Gates Mills, Ohio are two of the girls chosen and will be coached by USTA National Coach Jamea Jackson, based out of the USTA Training Center – Headquarters in Boca Raton, Fla.
The two events annually feature some of the world’s best players ages 14-and-under. A number of former Les Petits As champions have gone on to become No. 1 in the world, including Rafael Nadal, Kim Clijsters and Martina Hingis. Former American winners include Michael Chang, Donald Young and Bethanie Mattek-Sands, while Lindsay Davenport was a finalist.
An American boy or girl has won the singles title in at least one of the two events each of the last three years. Last year, CiCi Bellis swept the girls singles and doubles titles at both events. In 2012, Francis Tiafoe, who is now ranked among the Top 10 juniors in the world, won both boys’ singles titles.
Follow the results of each tournament at www.TennisEurope.org