23 May 2023
Paralympian Louise Hunt Skelley to commentate once more at this year’s Wimbledon Championships
Paralympian Commentating at Wimbeldon. Former British wheelchair tennis player Louise Hunt will be sharing her expertise while commentating at this year’s Wimbledon championships. The championship has, this year, provided more opportunities for wheelchair players.
I’m so excited to have involvement in the tournament which is going to be more inclusive than ever,’ Louise said.
The July wheelchair tennis tournament is this year taking place over five days instead of four. This move will allow more public access to the sport and also to further support the players.
Marc Mccarroll, NAGP Coach for the Wheelchair Performance Pathway and member of the LTA (Lawn Tennis Association) said:
‘This will give the public another day to see our sport in action. I’ll help the players maintain the high level we’ve seen over the years, due to the demands that grass has on wheelchair players.
‘Also off the back of last year’s success where wheelchair matches took place on Court 1 and the crowds that brought to the sport, it will be great to build on this and continue to see the sport grow in this country.’
Over the eight
Louise, who lives in Wroughton, is celebrating commentating on her eighth Wimbledon tournament and has some tips on who to look out for this time round.
One to watch this year is Novak Djokovic. He’s won Wimbledon six times and is currently the defending champion. The main reason he’s one to watch though is that this year he is chasing a record-breaking twenty-one Grand Slam titles! If he’s successful in winning the championships again, he would surpass both Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer!
‘Jack Draper from the UK has had a considerable rise in his rankings this past year and his powerful leftie style is always exciting to watch. He’s got so much potential and I’m looking forward to seeing what impact he can make this year!
‘In the wheelchair competition, world number two from Japan, Tokito Oda, is definitely one to watch. At a mere sixteen years old he has had a phenomenal year, flying into the top ten in the world very fast.
‘In January he made his first grand slam final on his debut at the Australian Open. Then in April he became the youngest winner of the Japan Open (Super Series) men’s singles title in Iizuka City. A super nice young man with incredible talent and determination, I can’t wait to see him make an impact.’
Louise
Louise represented Great Britain at both the London and Rio Paralympics. She’s won thirteen senior singles and forty-one senior doubles titles, with a career-high world ranking of Ten. She made two Wimbledon appearances as a player. Once in 2015 in the doubles and the following year in both the singles and doubles event. This was the first year that the event held singles matches.
Today Louise is a tennis commentator, tournament director and inclusion specialist as well as a motivational speaker. Find out more about her by visiting http://www.louisehunt.co.uk
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