Rwandan teenager Junior Hakizumwami is set to depart for Morocco on January 17 next year where he is expected to start his tennis scholarship programme at the International Tennis Federation (ITF) High-Performance Training Centre. Hakizumwami, 14, was already one of the eight youngsters comprising the January 2020 cohort that was admitted for the same scholarship in Kenya but later returned to Rwanda following the novel coronavirus outbreak. The youngster was offered the scholarship thanks to his stellar performance that saw him win silver during the East African U14 Tennis Championships held in Kenya in December 2019. He also helped Rwanda to finish top at the ITF/CAT East Africa Junior Tennis Championships where he struck gold in the men’s U-14 singles category to win the competition which was held at Gymkhana Club in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania in January this year. Valens Habimana, the Secretary General of Rwanda Tennis Federation told Times Sport that he is confident Hakizumwami has the potential to flourish if he performs well at the ITF centre because his performance on the national and regional level are so advanced. “We are proud of Hakizumwami’s quick rise in Tennis and we hope he will continue to make a difference while in Morocco. He showed that his performance is at a high level and that gives us motivation to produce more young Tennis players ready to earn scholarships in the near future,” said Habimana in a telephone interview. Habimana hailed Hakizumwami’s talent adding that Rwanda could have a Tennis star if he continues on the same path. “When you look at his level of performance at the moment, it gives us hope that the future of Tennis in Rwanda is good. He has a good future ahead and we believe his development in this game will inspire others,” he said. The last time he was in Morocco was in 2019 when he qualified to represent Rwanda and East Africa at the African Championships after finishing top at the U-12 Championships held in Kigali.
