Rwanda Tennis Federation (RTF) in partnership with International Tennis Federation officially launched beach tennis in the country on Wednesday.

The event was held at Amahoro Stadium.

Beach tennis is practiced in over 50 countries, and Rwanda becomes the third country in the region to introduce it after Kenya and Tanzania.

According to experts, the sport offers an excellent cardio workout, which is highly aerobic but with low impact to the knees and joints because it is played on the sand.

"We are going to initiate a programme for the youth so we can start producing beach tennis players. We will also put in place training to trainers who will coach the youngsters on a regular basis,” said Theoneste Karenzi, the RTF president.

He further explained that talks are underway with ITF to make sure they can provide equipment.

Thierry Ntwali, ITF development officer, who was present during launch, said that he was excited to see beach tennis welcomed by young players. 

"ITF helps federations by training coaches and giving possible equipment. We look forward to working with RTF in an effort to take beach tennis to all corners of the country.” he noted.

In October, RTF introduced deaf tennis in schools, while wheelchair tennis was introduced two years earlier, both as part of the bid to make the sport inclusive to all.