David Farnor | On 13, Jun 2019

 
Amazon Prime Video is teaming up with Andy Murray to support young British tennis talent with a new, biennial award. The Prime Video Future Talent Award, supported by Andy, will select one male and female player to receive a total of £60,000 in funding over a two-year cycle, to be used for developing skills and progressing their career as they look to break into the professional ranks. 
 
The award, which has been created and developed in partnership with the multiple Grand Slam winner, will be open to all young junior British tennis players between the ages of 16 and 20. The shortlisted applicants will be whittled down to one male and one female winner, by a selection panel presided over by Andy and comprised of Tim Henman and Annabel Croft. In addition, the GB Fed Cup Captain, Anne Keothavong, has joined the selection panel to provide additional insight from the rigorous selection processes that underpin the identification of players for the LTA’s (Lawn Tennis Association) existing programmes.
 
In addition to £30,000 per year, award winners will receive one-on-one progress updates with Andy, as well as support from Amazon mentors. In order to identify those at the most critical stage of their career, a list of criteria for applications has been developed. All applicants must meet the criteria and submit a personal statement, which will go on to form the shortlist presented to the judging panel.
 
“It’s important to help develop young talent in this country – the transition from juniors to seniors isn’t easy,” says Andy Murray. “I’ve been working with Amazon to develop this offering and hopefully it can help future British players.”
 
“It’s important to us to support tennis off-screen as well as on – that’s why we’re so delighted to be partnering with Andy on the Prime Video Future Talent Award” comments Alex Green, MD of Sports, Prime Video Europe. “We’re pleased to be able to help support two young British players to reach the next level of the sport.”
 
The Prime Video Future Talent Award, supported by Andy Murray, is announced as Amazon serves up a growing raft of tennis coverage. From 2019 to 2023, Amazon Prime Video will deliver live and exclusive coverage of over 220 days of tennis tournaments, including 37 ATP Tour events, the US Open exclusively in the UK and Ireland, and the first ever ATP Cup, live from Perth in January 2020. Prime Video will also broadcast The Laver Cup, The Nitto ATP Finals from The O2, the Next Gen ATP Finals, all ATP 500s, including the Fever Tree Championships from The Queen’s Club and 13 ATP 250s, including the Nature Valley International from Eastbourne. Additionally, from 2020, Amazon Prime Video will have exclusive rights to show the top Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) tournaments in a four-year deal, representing the first time both the men’s and women’s professional tours have been available in one place in the UK.
 
Applications for the Prime Video Future Talent Award are now open – submissions will close on 12th July, 2019, with winners announced later in the year. Further information can be found at www.amazon.co.uk/futuretalentaward 

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