Colombian Tennis Federation Honored with Global Organization of Distinction Award

The Federación Colombiana de Tenis (Colombian Tennis Federation) has been honored by the International Tennis Hall of Fame with the 2022 Global Organization of Distinction Award, in recognition of the Federation’s commitment to growing the sport within the nation of Colombia.

The award was presented Monday on behalf of the ITHF by Hall of Famer Mark Woodforde at the International Tennis Federation’s AGM. Annually, the Global Organization of Distinction Award recognizes to a tennis organization, association, federation, or facility that has demonstrated a successful track record of distinguished service and contributions towards the growth of tennis.

“The Colombian Tennis Federation is among the best of the best in consistent development within our sport,” said Todd Martin, CEO of the ITHF. “Colombia’s tennis traditions are steadfast thanks to its national federation’s commitment to grassroots tennis through establishing professional excellence in the sport. The Federation has built a strong foundation on which generations of players have benefitted and will continue to thrive.”

Selected by a committee of ITF and ITHF representatives, the Colombian Tennis Federation has dedicated itself to developing tennis at all levels – from juniors through the professional ranks. The Federation is committed to introducing the sport at a young age through initiatives such as its Tennis in the Schools program. As a result, Colombia is home to a thriving ITF juniors program, hosts several international juniors events, and sits fourth in the world for number of coaches registered in the ITF Academy.

The Federation annually hosts South America’s only WTA tournament, the Copa Colsanitas, at the Centro de Alto Rendimiento, the nation’s National Tennis Center in Bogotá. In 2020, the state-of-the-art facility was awarded ITF Silver Level status.

The Federation has consistently developed top professional players in both the men’s and women’s game. On the men’s side, Colombia is home to the former world No. 1 doubles team of Juan Cabal and Robert Farah, winners of titles at Wimbledon and the US Open in 2019. The US Open girls’ singles champion that same year, Camila Osorio, has risen as high as No. 33 in the WTA rankings in her young professional career, and won her first WTA title at the Copa Colsanitas in 2021.