Australian team announced for 2023 IBSA World Games

An 11-person team will represent Australia at the IBSA World Games in Great Britain next month.

Tuesday 11 July 2023
tennis.com.au
Melbourne, Australia
Mark Haskett, Mick Leigh, Arato Katsuda-Green, Adam Fayad, Courtney Webeck, Courtney Lewis, Grace Hobbs, Phoebe David, Summer Giddings with coaches Steve Manley, Nicholas Bradley and Jay Schuback pose for a team photo as the Australian Blind Low Vision tennis team receive their Green and Gold uniforms at the National Tennis Centre, Melbourne on Thursday, July 13, 2023. MANDATORY PHOTO CREDIT TENNIS AUSTRALIA/ SCOTT BARBOUR

Australia's top Blind and Low Vision (BLV) tennis players have been selected for the upcoming IBSA World Games in Great Britain.

The 2023 International Blind Sports Federation (IBSA) World Games is the largest high-level international event for athletes with a visual impairment. The event runs in Birmingham from 18-27 August, with tennis featuring on the schedule for the first time.

Australia's 11-person team will be the largest tennis team at the IBSA World Games, and will mark the first time Tennis Australia has supported a BLV team at an international event.

The IBSA World Games return this year after a seven-year hiatus due to COVID-19 interruptions to the four-yearly event schedule. More than 1250 competitors from 70 nations will play across sports such as tennis, goalball, judo, cricket and more.

BLV tennis is played with an adapted foam ball that can be heard rattling across the court. The courts are also smaller, with lines on the court raised to mark certain boundaries.

There are four classifications in the BLV tennis pathway. These are:


    • B1 - Visual acuity poorer than LogMAR 2.60

    • B2 - Visual acuity ranging from LogMAR 1.50 to 2.60 (inclusive)

    • B3 - Visual acuity ranging from LogMAR 1.0 to 1.40 (inclusive) OR visual fields less than 10 degrees diameter and visual acuity better than 0.5 (B4)

    • B4 - Visual acuity ranging from LogMAR 0.5 to 0.9 (inclusive) OR visual fields less than 40 degrees diameter and visual acuity better than 0.5.

    IBSA World Games 2023Australian team
    StateAustralian ranking
    Men
    Mark HaskettSAB2 singles - No.1B2 open doubles - No.1B3 men's singles - No.4B3 open doubles - No.17
    Mick LeighNSWB3 men's singles - No.1B3 open doubles - No.2B4 open singles - No.3B4 open doubles - No.1
    Ross PattersonVicB4 open singles - No.1B4 open doubles - No.3
    Arato Katsuda-GreenNSWB4 open singles - No.1B4 open doubles - No.3Junior singles - No.1
    Adam FayadVicB3 open doubles - No.1
    Ricky SeguraSAB3 open doubles - No.10
    Women
    Courtney WebeckNSWB2 singles - No.1B2 open doubles - No.2B3 open doubles - No.6
    Courtney LewisSAB2 singles - No.2B2 open doubles - No.2B3 open doubles - No.8
    Grace HobbsNSWB4 open singles - No.6B4 open doubles - No.1
    Phoebe DavidVicB3 singles - No.2B3 open doubles - No.7
    Summer GiddingsNSWN/A

    Steve Manley and Nicolas Bradley will coach the Australian team, with Jay Schuback travelling as team manager.

    Former Davis Cup captain John Fitzgerald presented team members with their Australian uniform in Melbourne on Thursday.

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