Building relationships is very important to us here at STA. We love meeting players and their families who choose to come and train with us from all over the world. Sometimes, however, the friends we make are not from a pre-planned training week or visit and are more spontaneous. Our guest blogger Elise is one of our unplanned visitors-turned-friends!
Meeting Team Soto
Hi! My name is Elise, I’m a 19-year-old student, and I’m currently on my gap year – I have accepted a deferred place at Cardiff Metropolitan University to study Sport Media, which I am incredibly excited about. In my gap year so far, I’ve had the amazing opportunity to live in Sotogrande for 3 months as an au pair.
During my time here, I’ve not only been able to significantly improve my tennis level, but also gain some invaluable work experience in Sports Media and Marketing, all through meeting Team Soto… I have loved my time at SotoTennis Academy (STA), and I wanted to share some highlights with those who might be interested in visiting the Academy from both a player and work experience student perspective.
Accessing STA
My experience as an Access Player at STA has been instrumental for the development of my tennis, both my technique and mindset. Team Soto was incredibly welcoming from the start, and communicated with me daily to ensure I was having the best experience possible and getting the most out of my time here.
My first training session was with Carl Maes, STA’s Performance Director. The session contained a mix of drills, point play and video analysis, something that really helped me to recognise the areas of my tennis that I needed to develop in ways I had never considered before. The coaches’ level of expertise was second to none in each STA training session I did, and I was consistently fed new ideas to improve my game, which I was excited to immediately put into practice.
I especially valued the coaches’ time when meeting before a match to discuss my game plan, and then reflecting on the match after they had watched me throughout, when they were able to give me honest and constructive feedback. I felt that the coaches were genuinely invested in helping me to improve my tennis – this was a particular highlight, as it’s something I’ve not experienced that often in my training over the years.
Get Involved!
In addition to the quality of coaching, I had never before been surrounded by such high level players, and I enjoyed being challenged by the Full Time Academy Players in both sessions and matches. I was particularly impressed by the coach to player ratio, as most of my STA training sessions had one coach to every two players, which I had never experienced before.
From a player perspective, my advice to anyone considering training at STA would be to do as much as you can! Every session is valuable, and you will learn so much each time you talk to any of the coaches. A huge thank you from me to each and every one of them!
Podcast Planning
Alongside training, I was also able to shadow and work with STA’s ‘Off-Court’ Team. I initially carried out some market research for the Academy’s podcast, Control the Controllables. I found the podcast really informative, and the number of big names in the tennis world – such as Women’s World No. 1 Iga Światek, Top Ten ATP Player Holger Rune, and top-ranked ATP Doubles Players Lloyd Glasspool and Harri Heliövaara – who have appeared as guests was impressive.
I enjoyed sharing my opinions and thoughts from a listener’s perspective on how I felt the podcast could be improved and developed in the future. Faye, STA’s Head of Marketing, guided me through this project so that the Academy could achieve the maximum benefit from my research and consider the ways in which to develop their content in the future, as well as to enable me to gain a great insight into podcasting.
Getting Creative
I was also able to shadow and work with other members of the Marketing and Communications Team, including learning different social media techniques and strategies, creating assets using graphic design tools, and developing my writing and editing skills.
Be Proactive!
If anyone is interested in joining STA for a Placement Year or work experience, I would thoroughly recommend it. It is a fun and fast-paced work environment, with a level of excellence that is exciting to see. My advice would be to take a proactive approach and run with the creative freedom you are given, as this is how you will make the most of your time at the Academy. I cannot wait to start my Sport Media degree in September with my new-found skills!
Sunny Sotogrande
Living in the Sotogrande Marina for 3 months allowed me to experience the many different opportunities and explore the beautiful places that Sotogrande and the surrounding area have to offer. The Marina itself has some amazing restaurants which I tried throughout my stay, as well as the One4One Fitness Center which I was lucky enough to live just across from, so I could use it daily. Whilst the main language used at STA was English, there were still plenty of opportunities to practise my Spanish.
Life Lessons
Before I came to Sotogrande, I had never been away from home by myself for as long as 3 months, so at first I was slightly apprehensive as to how I would cope. Initially, the first few weeks were slow-moving, but once I got involved with the Academy and started playing tennis daily, I quickly settled into a routine that I loved.
My advice to anyone considering travelling here who has never been away by themselves is to push yourself out of your comfort zone. I have learnt so many life lessons from being independent in a new country, and have felt my character develop significantly for the better throughout my time here.
My time at SotoTennis Academy on and off the court has been invaluable from both a player and work experience student perspective. The life lessons I have learnt both on and off the court will stay with me forever. I have loved being a part of Team Soto, and will always be grateful for the time I have been able to spend here. I look forward to continuing my link with STA throughout my time at University, and to visiting again in the future!
We look forward to having you back in Sotogrande Elise!
Any questions about SotoTennis Academy Access Weeks or Work Experience Opportunities? Contact us here!