Tennis players on Vancouver Island have a new way of staying connected during the pandemic.
TossUp Clubhouse is a website aiming to unite new and experienced players across the island.
“There’s no fees, there’s no cost to join and once they’re in they can choose their neighbourhood, they can choose their skill level and they’ll be put into groups with other people who are the same skill level and in the same are,” says TossUp’s founder David Koo.
The sport has always been a way for Koo to connect with his community. He’s no stranger to bringing fellow tennis players together either.
“I’ve been running a tennis league in Vancouver for 5 years,” says Koo.
“I’m originally from Vancouver and just moved here a couple years ago so I’m fairly familiar with what’s going on in the tennis world,” adds Koo.
When the pandemic hit David was pleasantly surprised when he noticed a dramatic increase in people picking up a racquet in the U.S. and Canada.
“The number of new tennis players to the sport has gone up about 43 percent and they measure that by how many beginner racquets are sold in the stores and in terms of overall tennis 50 percent more players are playing than last year,” says Koo.
The jump in numbers is why David decided to launch his site. It’s only been up for a few days, but already has over 50 members, all wanting to come together while staying 6 feet apart.
“I love this platform,” exclaims site member Phillip Bisset-Covaneiro. “I’ve gone on and registered through Toss Up and it’s really neat to see the different segments … I’m pretty average skill set at the best and looking to get out a little bit more.”
The positive response has been equally rewarding for Koo.
“It’s really exciting to see everyone coming in and there’s just a lot of positive energy,” says Koo. “It seemed like something that the community was really looking forward to taking advantage of.”
Down the road, David hopes his online community will continue to help the sport grow on the island.
“Whatever you need to do in the tennis community, I want people to be able to plug in and have access to a network of people that can help them and work with to get those things done,” says Koo.
To sign up, visit TossUp’s website.
Cole Sorenson
