Turkmen tennis players Maral Akhmedova and Nazar Dovmatov participated in the regional conference for coaches from Western and Central Asia, which took place in Manama.
The regional forum, organized by the International Tennis Federation (ITF), brought together more than 50 coaches from 12 countries in the capital of Bahrain. Over three days, they were trained on topics such as organizing the training process, tactical and technical training methods, preparing players for matches, and the role of male and female coaches in competitions and in developing sports reserves.
Maral Akhmedova, a member of the Turkmenistan national team and holder of an ITF Level 1 coaching certificate, successfully combines active tennis participation with coaching at the 7th sports school in Danev etrap, Lebap velayat. She acknowledged that the knowledge gained at the ITF conference will be applied in training processes with children.
The male representative of the Turkmen delegation at the conference was young future coach Nazar Dovmatov, who is currently studying at the Turkmen State Institute of Physical Culture and Sports with a specialization in tennis coaching.
The Tennis Federation of Turkmenistan, led since 2022 by Eziz Dovletov, Master of Sports, winner of the Davis Cup Group IV Asia/Oceania zone, prize-winner of many international and national tournaments, places significant emphasis on coach education and professional skill development. Currently, over 40 certified coaches who have completed the introductory ITF Play Tennis course work with children and beginners in Turkmenistan. The number of coaches holding ITF Level 1 certificates has increased to 18.
Additionally, last year, Mirali Gasanov, the 32-year-old head coach of Turkmenistan's men's national team and the Ashgabat Tennis Academy, became the first in Turkmenistan to obtain the PRO Level certificate. This certification allows him to work with professional players worldwide after successfully completing testing and training at David Ferrer's renowned tennis academy in Valencia, Spain.
