Nick Bollettieri, Sean Hannity and Tim Mayotte Headline First Annual New York Tennis Expo Speaker Sessions

New York Tennis Magazine and Long Island Tennis Magazine have assembled an incredible slate of speakers for the First Annual New York Tennis Expo, set for Sunday, April 28 at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, N.Y. Both Speaker Sessions will be headlined by world renowned Coach Nick Bollettieri and will feature former world top 10 player Tim Mayotte. Serving as emcee and moderator for both Sessions will be news anchor and political commentator Sean Hannity.

Space will be limited for these Sessions and bracelets will be given out for those looking to attend the panels on a first-come, first-serve basis on the day of the Expo. Attendees will be able to sign up and get their bracelets at the registration table. Please arrive early at the event to secure your spot for the Speaker Sessions as space will be sure to fill up quickly. Doors will open and the Expo begins at 10:30 a.m.

Schedule of Events ♦ Sunday, April 28, 2013

(Program is subject to change)
11:30 a.m.-1:00 p.m. … Speaker Session #1: The Road to College Scholarships
1:30 p.m.-3:00 p.m. … Speaker Session #2: Taking Your Game to the Next Level

Session #1: The Road to College Scholarships
Headline Speaker: Nick Bollettieri
Featured Speaker: Tim Mayotte
Emcee: Sean Hannity
Panel Speakers: Howie Arons, Clay Bibbee, Whitney Kraft, Jay Harris & Cory Parr

Speaker Session #2: Taking Your Game to the Next Level
Headline Speaker: Nick Bollettieri
Featured Speaker: Tim Mayotte
Panel Speakers: Steve Kaplan, Lawrence Kleger, Tom Clear, Tina Greenbaum & Dr. Tom Ferraro

Speaker Bios

Nick Bollettieri
Nick Bollettieri is one of the most influential people in the world of tennis, and a legend who has transcended the sport. In 1978, he founded the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy, now known as the IMG Academy Bollettieri Tennis program, in Bradenton, Fla. IMG Academy was the first full-time tennis boarding school to combine intense training on the court with a custom-designed academic curriculum. What was once a program of primarily on-court training, has evolved into a multi-faceted approach which includes blending technical and strategic on-court training with specialized performance physical training and mental conditioning. The Bollettieri approach is designed not only to build athletes on the court, but more importantly, prepare them for a successful life off the court as well. It was this proven method that Nick used to coach 10 number one players in the world, including Andre Agassi, Boris Becker, Jim Courier, Martina Hingis, Jelena Jankovic, Marcelo Rios, Monica Seles, Maria Sharapova, and Venus and Serena Williams, as well as a multitude of other world-class players, including Tommy Haas, Anna Kournikova, Jimmy Arias and Nicole Vaidisova, to name a few. IMG Academy quickly became synonymous with tennis excellence, and its coaches and students continue to reflect Nick’s passion for excellence and the game.

Tim Mayotte
Tim Mayotte was one of the United States’ best tennis players during the 1980s. Twice during the 80s, he finished the year ranked in the world’s top 10. Over the course of his career, he has recorded wins over the greatest players of his era, including Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, Jimmy Connors, John McEnroe, Boris Becker, Stefan Edberg and others. Besides reaching the semifinals of Wimbledon and the Australian Open, he also won a Silver Medal in the Olympics and represented his nation in Davis Cup action. For the last decade, Tim has shifted his focus to developing top American players and is currently running 360 Tennis at the Cunningham Tennis Center with his partners, Lee Hurst and Carl Thorsen.

Sean Hannity
Sean Hannity joined Fox News Channel (FNC) in September 1996. He currently hosts his self-titled program, "Hannity" (Monday-Friday, 9:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m. ET). He is one of the most prominent and influential conservative voices in the country and his program offers a mix of news, commentary, interviews and branded segments, such as the Great American Panel—made up of three nightly in-studio guests from across the political spectrum to discuss the issues of the day. Known for his provocative style free-wheeling, passionate commentary on politics and the American agenda, Hannity has become one of the most popular radio personalities nationwide as the host of ABC Radio Networks’ "The Sean Hannity Show," syndicated to more than 500 stations and heard in all of the top 50 markets with a loyal listener base of 13.5 million.

Howie Arons
For the past 37 years, Howie Arons has been one of the most successful coaches in the USTA Eastern Section. His programs have produced more than 75 Division I college players and hundreds of high school players. At Cardozo High School, where he has been the head coach for 37 years, his teams have won 18 PSAL Championships and 12 Mayor Cup Championships. Arons has the most wins of any high school tennis coach in New York State with 582. In 1989, he was recognized as ETA Coach of the Year, and in 2007, he was named Coach of the Year by the USPTA. Currently, Arons is the managing partner and tennis director of the New York Tennis Academy at Great Neck Estates. In addition, he runs The NY Tennis Academy Summer Tennis Day Camp at Shelter Rock Tennis and Country Club.

Clay Bibbee
Clay Bibbee is managing partner and senior director of player development and founder of The Academy at Centercourt, overseeing the development of more than 700 junior players. The Academy offers all facets of junior development, starting from a complete 10 & Under Tennis program and continuing upward to the development of high performance, nationally-ranked caliber players. Clay, along with his staff of trained tennis professionals, oversees the progress of elite junior players and the general Academy groups. Clay believes in building strong athletes on the courts, and coaching them for a successful life off the courts as well. He is responsible for the development of Centercourt Athletic Club in Chatham, N.J., a fully-encompassing 15-acre tennis campus which features 20 indoor courts offering multi-playing surfaces, 12 outdoor Har-Tru courts, an Academy Room featuring on-court video surveillance, a weight room with high-end equipment for athletic conditioning, many indoor and outdoor turf training fields, an outdoor 25-meter swimming pool, and multiple clubhouses.

Tom Clear
Tom Clear is a director of tennis for Gotham Tennis Academy at Stadium Tennis Center. Tom brings more than 25 years of industry experience as a coach and director. Most recently, Tom served as a coach at the USTA Player Development Training Center East, working with some of America’s most talented players. He is a member of the USTA Eastern Section Coaches Commission and was a head coach for the Eastern Section 12s National Zonals Team. Tom has served as a head coach at USTA/Eastern High Performance Camps and at USTA National Talent ID Camps.

Dr. Tom Ferraro
Sports Psychiatrist Dr. Tom Ferraro has worked with major insurance companies and brokerage houses in how to set goals, maintain confidence and stay focused in order to achieve success. Dr. Ferraro has a degree in economics from a leading business school, a Ph.D. in applied psychology and a post-graduate degree in psychoanalysis. He has integrated his training in these three areas with his experience working with the nation’s leading athletes to bring to the business community this rare combination.

Tina Greenbaum, LCSW
Tina has been a practicing holistic psychotherapist for more than 30 years. Her interest in mind/body health and sports psychology merged when her children were engaged in the highly competitive sports arena. Since then, she has worked with athletes, actors, speakers, business executives and others who wish to improve their performance under pressure.

Jay Harris
Jay Harris is currently a regional manager and director of college consulting for Sportime. Jay was the head men’s coach at Brown University for eight years prior to moving to New York. He left Brown in 2010 as the most successful coach in the 100-plus year history of that program, having led the team to its highest national ranking ever (#33), two straight Ivy League Titles, and seven consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances. In 2005, Harris was named the Northeast Region Coach of the Year and was a finalist for the National Coach of the Year Award. He coached five singles players and 15 different doubles teams to the national rankings, including one All-American team. One of his players recently advanced to his second consecutive Wimbledon Quarterfinals appearance, having been ranked in the top 50 on the ATP Tour. Before Brown, Harris coached at Bowling Green State University, where one of his players was SPORTIME’s own Regional Director of Tennis Mike Kossoff. At Bowling Green, Harris was named the 2002 Mid-American Conference Coach of the Year after leading his squad to MAC Titles in 2000 and 2002. A former successful collegiate player at the University of Cincinnati, Jay moved to Miami University where he was an assistant women’s tennis coach while earning his masters degree in 1996 with a concentration in sports psychology. In addition to coaching many of the nation’s top tennis players, Jay has also worked with many athletes as a Peak Performance Consultant to enhance psychological skills such as visual imagery, anxiety regulation, self-talk and goal-setting.

Steven Kaplan
Steven Kaplan is the owner of Bethpage Park Tennis Center, as well as the director of Reebok Academy for New York City Parks Foundation. Over the last 35 years, Steve has been the longtime coach of more than 500 nationally-ranked junior players, 14 state high school champions, two NCAA Division 1 Singles Champions, and numerous touring professionals and prominent coaches. Steve’s students have been awarded in excess of $7 million in college scholarships.

Lawrence Kleger
A native New Yorker, Lawrence Kleger is director of the John McEnroe Tennis Academy, and is recognized as one of the top developmental coaches in the U.S. He is a past recipient of the Tennis Professional of the Year Award in the USTA/Eastern Section/Long Island Region. Lawrence is also the personal coach of Noah Rubin, who trains at the John McEnroe Tennis Academy and who has been Lawrence’s student since the age of seven. Noah is a highly-ranked American tennis prospect and reached a career-best number six ITF junior world ranking at the age of 16. He has won two Level 1 ITF singles titles and reached the quarterfinals of the 2012 Junior French Open. Lawrence’s students have won countless national and regional championships and 18 USTA Eastern Year-End Sportsmanship Awards. As director of tennis of the John McEnroe Tennis Academy, Lawrence oversees locations at Sportime Randall’s Island in Manhattan, Sportime Bethpage Tennis on Long Island and Sportime Lake Isle in Westchester.

Whitney Kraft
Since 2007, Whitney Kraft has been the Director of Tennis at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing, NY and Director of Player Operations for the U.S. Open. Previously, he was Director of Tennis for the City of Fort Lauderdale Park & Recreation Department (1998-2007). He was a 1983 Singles All-American for Florida Atlantic University, and inducted into their inaugural Athletic Hall of Fame class in 2006. He is a National 10 & under Trainer, a U.S.P.P.T.A Platform Tennis instructor, member of Beach Tennis USA Board of Advisors, as well as a member of the National Cardio Tennis Speakers Team. A USPTA member since 1983, Whitney served as District Director for Broward County, Florida and as President of the local CTA, Broward Tennis Association. Whitney has been the Tournament Director for many prestigious events including the National Public Parks Tennis championships (2007), ITF World Championships (2002), the inaugural U.S. Open National Sectional playoffs (2010), USTA Boys 14 National Clay Court Championships (2000-2007) and the USTA National Open Clay Court and Indoor Championships (1998-present).

For more information on the First Annual New York Tennis Expo, e-mail info@usptennis.com, call (516) 409-4444, and for free pre-registration to the event, log on to http://nytennisexpo.eventbrite.com.