2020 New York Tennis Expo is Largest Yet

February 25, 2020 | By Long Island Tennis Magazine Staff
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Credit photos to Owen Kassimir and Sidney Beal III

 

Back and better than ever, the New York Tennis Expo presented by Pop Earth returned to NYCB Live, home of the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum. More than 6,500 people came out for the all-day celebration of tennis as we kicked off the third year of the New York Open with the nation’s largest tennis expo ever.

“The 2020 New York Tennis Expo was a resounding success,” said David Sickmen, New York Tennis Expo Founder and Director. “We have heard great feedback from both attendees and vendors, and were happy to once again kick off another year of the New York Open. By adding new activities and expanding our reach in the community, the Expo continues to grow from year to year, and we’re excited to keep on bringing events like this to the area. Partnering with the New York Open and NYCB LIVE for the third straight year, and the addition of Pop Earth as the title sponsor this year, we were able to join forces and create a record-breaking event.”

 

For the seventh time, the Expo completely sold out its exhibit space and featured more than 70 vendors from all over the country, covering an array of different businesses as well as providing exhibiting spaces for more than 10 local charities.

“When you look around and see all the things happening at the Expo, a children’s birthday party, a 60-person standing room audience for one of the speaker sessions, a tennis group that drove down from Rochester, and more than 100 high school volunteers, it’s clear that Expo has become a scene and the place to be in early February,” said Steve Kaplan, Owner and Managing Director of Bethpage Park Tennis Center.

 

To start things off in the morning, Nick Bollettieri, founder of IMG Academy, the Farmingdale State Rams, and high school teams from Roslyn and West Islip, ran a clinic for members of Pop Earth, the event’s title sponsor that provide programs and holistic health services for those with special needs, on Stadium Court. More than 100 people participated in the clinic.

Throughout the day, there were clinics run by local college teams from Hofstra, Adelphi and Nassau Community, as well as tennis professionals from local clubs and players from high school teams on Long Island. Kids of all levels were able to go out on court and receive instruction from some of the top players and coaches in the area who created a welcoming atmosphere that was open to all Expo guests.

 

Thanks to our partnership with the New York Open, new to the Expo this year was the ability for guests to watch the opening round of the qualifying tournament, where professional players competed for a shot at the tournament’s main draw. Prior to that, ATP stars such as Kevin Anderson, Milos Raonic and Tennys Sandgren were practicing on court, and all Expo guests were allowed to grab a seat and watch how these pros prepared for the tournament.

In addition, there were games and activities for everyone to enjoy inside the Expo Hall, including Beach Tennis, POP Tennis, the New York Islanders Slapshot Booth, the New York Riptide’s Lacrosse Shootout, a mechanical bull, bounce house, photo booth and more.

 

“The Expo seems to be getting bigger and bigger every year.  USTA Eastern was proud to help sponsor and coordinate our Net Gen programming with the event which allowed children of all ages to play on the black courts with college, high school and local club volunteers,” said Jonathan Klee, Regional Director for USTA Eastern’s Long Island Region. “Combining the Expo with the qualifiers was a win-win situation for everyone in that it brought the Long Island tennis community together with vendors in a carnival like atmosphere while also watching great quality tennis.”

 

 

The Expo featured two separate coaching panels with industry experts, highlighted by the appearance of Bollettieri as well as current touring pros Jack Sock, Brayden Schnur and Tommy Paul. Guests were able to hear from these panelists on a wide variety of topics, and the sessions were interactive to allow audience members to ask questions directly to the speakers.

The New York Open’s Draw Ceremony once again took place on center stage at the New York Tennis Expo Broadcast Plaza, where the opening round matchups were revealed with a little twist, as multiple players from the tournament were on stage to answer questions from fans and Tournament Director Peter Lebedevs. Anderson, Reilly Opelka, Cameron Norrie and eventual champion Kyle Edmund were on stage to answer questions and take pictures with Expo guests.

In all, the New York Tennis Expo was a celebration of the great sport of tennis, and was a vehicle to bring together so many different facets that make up the community. The array of business and charities that were on display, coupled with the local high school and college players, adults and juniors, and tennis fans and non-tennis fans, the Expo had something for everyone. It’s our hope that this record-breaking event will be a springboard for continued success of tennis in our community in 2020.

Click Here to see more photos from the 2020 New York Tennis Expo 


See What They Are Saying…

“This year Pop.Earth was very excited to be the Title Sponsor of the NY Tennis Expo at Nassau Coliseum.  We launched our new tennis initiative “Making a Racquet”! for Autism by hosting a tennis clinic that included our individuals and volunteers from the Roslyn and West Islip tennis clubs! It was a hit!  Our team was able to bring autism awareness to all who attended and introduced Pop.Earth to a whole new audience! It was a win for all!” – Deb Stone, Founder, Pop Earth

“First off, I wanted to congratulate Dave, Joel, Brian and the entire team at NY/Long Island Tennis Magazine for putting together another outstanding Tennis Expo this year! It is amazing to be part of the largest tennis expo in history!  The tennis community is wonderful and the Expo was a great chance to come together. SPORTIME is proud to be a part of this wonderful event, year in and year out.  We look forward to next year being bigger and better than ever.” – Jason Wass, Director of Tennis and Sports, SPORTIME Kings Park

“The Expo seems to be getting bigger and bigger every year. USTA Eastern was proud to help sponsor and coordinate our Net Gen programming with the event which allowed children of all ages to play on the Black Courts with College, High School and local club volunteers. Combining the Expo with the qualifiers was a win win situation for everyone in that it brought the Long Island tennis community together with vendors in a carnival like atmosphere while also watching great quality tennis.” – Jonathan Klee, Regional Director, USTA Eastern Long Island Region

“The New York Tennis Expo is an incredible event because it brings area tennis enthusiasts together with fun, excitement, education and service to the local community. The Expo grows the sport by raising awareness of the wealth of tennis opportunities in the New York area.” – Steve Kaplan, Owner and Managing Director, Bethpage Park Tennis Center

“The NY Tennis Expo was a wonderful opportunity to connect with young tennis players and their families.”– Louisa Childs, Head of School, Dwight Global Online School

“Amazing job by David Sickmen and his staff.  It just gets bigger and better every year!” – Kathy Miller, General Manager, Carefree Racquet Club

“The magazine and this Expo make it fun for a lot of people welcoming them to the tennis world, whether it’s Future Stars or other exponents and Programs, it’s good for all of us to come together and share the passion of this awesome sport, and the magazine and the Expo do a great job putting this together.” – Pablo Monesti, Vice President of Development, Future Stars Camps

“The New York Tennis Expo is an outstanding event. We look forward to this event every year. It is a great opportunity to interact with the tennis community and connect with other tennis businesses. Organizers facilitate a great experience and make sure we are all set for success” – Nicolas Duarte, Tennis Director, Camp IHC

“The New York Tennis Expo is an event we look forward to every year at the Evert Tennis Academy. The expo brings in tennis families from all across the state of New York and it is a great networking tool that we will use for years to come! The Expo staff was tremendous and it was overall another great experience!” – Andrew Parker, Director of Sales and Marketing, Evert Tennis Academy

“The New York Tennis Expo continues to be a unique event that brings together the entire tennis world. We were once again thrilled to be a sponsor of the event, and were able to connect with players and parents from the Long Island and New York area, and Nick Bollettieri was thrilled to take part in the speaker sessions, clinics and autograph signings.” – David Cotrone, Director of Business Development, IMG Academy

 “Point Set was proud to once again be a part of the New York Tennis Expo. The event continues to grow every year and there is no better way for us to showcase our programs and classes then by being able to sit down in front of the thousands and thousands of attendees that come out for the Expo. We look forward to coming back again next year!” – Lori Sarnelli, Club Manager, Point Set Tennis

“The New York Tennis Expo is a perfect opportunity for the tennis clubs to promote themselves and we thank Long Island Tennis Magazine for this. We saw a lot of our existing clients, made connections with new clients and also we had a lot of fun!​” – Raluca Pop Moldovan, Social Media Director, Glen Head Racquet Club

 

 


Long Island Tennis Magazine Staff
Bethpage
Pointset

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