Set in a sport wheelchair equipped with slanted wheels that provide extra balance and more fluid turns, 14-year-old Alex Saporito spins and wheels himself from the baseline to the net and from alley to alley, racquet ready in hand.
When he’s not on the court, Alex is a seventh-grade student at the University Laboratory School.
Alex will compete in the Cajun Classic Wheelchair Tennis Tournament, which takes place in Baton Rouge today through March 25 at the YMCA Lamar Tennis Center.
The Cajun Classic has been held annually since 1989 and is sanctioned by both the International Tennis Federation, ITF, and the United States Tennis Association, USTA. It is also the longest-running professional tennis tournament in Baton Rouge.
Nearly 120 “professional and amateur tennis players from 21 nations will compete in the tournament for world-ranking points and thousands of dollars in prize money,” said Jennifer Edmonson, the tournament director.
Alex was born with spina bifida, a condition where the backbone and spinal canal do not close before birth, according to the U.S. National Library of Medicine.
Alex can walk with crutches but uses a wheelchair to play tennis and for other activities that require him to put more weight on his legs.
Before Alex began playing tennis, he spent his summers and free time playing video games. But his mother, Mary Saporito, wanted him to be more active.
Through her own research and a consultation with a physical therapist, Mary found Carlos Roldan, a United States Professional Tennis Association (USPTA) professional and instructor at Baton Rouge YMCA Lamar Tennis Center, who directs a wheelchair tennis program for all ages.
“We enrolled Alex in the program and he has participated in it for almost three years now,” said Scott Saporito, Alex’s father. Alex practices with Roldan and his other students, who range in age from early teens to 60-year-olds, every Saturday for two hours.
He increased his court time once he became more serious about the sport, practicing two days during the school week in addition to his Saturday program. Alex also practices with U-High’s tennis team.
“I actually received this sport wheelchair at a tournament last year because the directors wanted to recognize my growing dedication to the sport,” Alex said. “I think they knew I was becoming more serious about tennis, and they wanted to provide me with a proper wheelchair.”
Alex has since traveled to Georgia, Kansas, Missouri and California for different tennis tournaments and programs. “We usually travel together,” Scott said. “It gives us a chance to do some things together and to visit places we would not normally visit.”
Alex, No. 4 seed in the amateur Division C, will compete in the singles draw and the doubles draw with his partner, Glen Singletary, the No. 1 seed in Division C.
The Greater Baton Rouge Community Tennis Association is sponsoring the event.
Rusty Jabour, president of the GBRCTA, said the tournament represents the diversity that tennis allows.
“We hope that this tournament proves to people that, no matter the age or the ability, they can play this sport,” Jabour said.
Cox Communications will televise the Cajun Classic’s finals matches Monday, March 26, on Cox4.
“There has never been a wheelchair tennis match televised in its entirety in the United States before,” Edmonson said.
Edmonson said Cox hopes to provide more exposure to wheelchair tennis and wants to display the players’ talents.
LSU pre-med, pre-physical therapy and kinesiology students will be on hand at the tournament for a service-learning component for their classes, and Mike the Tiger will make an appearance as well. The tournament will also host a fish fry and crawfish boil over the weekend. While attempting to describe the different techniques that professional wheelchair tennis players use – J turns, S turns, figure 8’s – Scott Saporito said, “You just have to see it. You’re going to be amazed.”
Tournament play begins at 8 a.m. today and will conclude Sunday, March 25. Admission is free for all matches, including the finals on Sunday.
 
____ Contact Lea Ciskowski at [email protected]