The International Tennis Federation has launched a series of mandatory online courses for junior players, providing vital education on a range of important subjects including integrity, standards of behaviour, tournament information and safeguarding. 

Any player aged 18 and under with an active Juniors International Player Identification Number (IPIN) is required to complete three mandatory courses by Monday 25 September 2023.  

From 25 September, players who have not completed the courses will be restricted from access to the IPIN online system which allows them to enter or withdraw from ITF sanctioned tournaments.  

The three mandatory courses are: 

ITF World Tennis Tour Juniors 1 – Pre-Tournament 

This course introduces players to essential information for participating in ITF World Tennis Tour Juniors tournaments such as entry definitions, age eligibility rules, entry offences and tournament formats.  

ITF World Tennis Tour Juniors 2 – During Competition 

Players will learn more about on court procedures and the ITF code of conduct, including areas such as interruption of play and medical timeouts.  

An introduction to values and integrity in tennis  

In partnership with the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA), this course allows players to explore what it means to have good integrity values and provides an overview of the key rules of the Tennis Anti-Corruption Programme (TACP) and Tennis Anti-Doping Programme (TADP).   

Through completing the courses, it is expected that players will achieve a sound knowledge of important on-court and off-court procedures and as they progress through to the ITF World Tennis Tour.  

Each of the three courses takes approximately 20 minutes to complete, with engaging content to support learning. 

Future plans include an updated Safeguarding course which will be a fourth mandatory element with effect from January 2024. Here players will learn about their right to enjoy tennis in a safe and inclusive environment, free from harassment and abuse, as well as what to do, how to report incidents or concerns, and who they can reach out to for help. 

All the mandatory courses will be available in a minimum of three languages (English, Spanish and French), noting the intention to add languages in due course.  

The ITF Academy – the ITF’s official education platform that provides hundreds of high-quality education content for players, coaches, parents, officials, and administrators – will host the courses which are accessible by all players competing in ITF World Tennis Tour Juniors tournaments.  

Free registration is available for ITF Academy, which allows access to more than 200 eLearning courses and hundreds of free content items within the Library.  

A player’s IPIN account is linked to ITF Academy and players can easily access ITF Academy courses using the same login details.  

Kelly Fairweather, ITF CEO said: “As the global guardians of the game, we are committed to preparing juniors players for all aspects of life on the tour and the launch of these mandatory education courses is a crucial part of that. Every subject covered in these courses – from tournament entry systems to code of conduct to integrity – is designed to equip players with the skills and knowledge they need to move through the ITF pathway and beyond.” 

This is the latest step taken by the ITF in its programme of player education, designed to support young players as they progress through the international player pathway, and on to the ITF World Tennis Tour – the main artery to the top of the game.  

It forms part of a wider one-sport approach to junior player education which sees the ITF working in collaboration with the Grand Slams, ATP, WTA, ITIA, Regional Associations and National Associations to provide in-person and remote education to help players and their support team members.  

An in-person education session led by the ITF, ATP and WTA, with the support of AELTC and the ITIA, was recently held at the J300 tournament in Roehampton, and featured a guest appearance and discussion with Billie Jean King.