Awards

Our awards include: Organization of the Year, Family of the Year, Nikos Ridle Junior Award, David Freed Award, Jan Dowse Award, Media Excellence Award, Developmental Coach of the Year and Barbara Clark Multi-Cultural Community Service Award.

Nomination forms must be returned no later than Monday, September 21, 2009 to our office - all contact information is below and on each nomination form.

USTA Intermountain's Board of Directors will consider nominations the first week of October, winners will be invited to be honored at the Annual Awards Luncheon & Ceremony during our Annual Meeting, January 30, 2009 in Salt Lake City, Utah.

DEADLINE:  Nominations are due by Monday, September 21, 2009 to 1201 South Parker Road, #200, Denver, Colorado 80231
FAX:  303-695-6518
EMAIL: asobieski@ita.usta.com
PHONE:  303-695-4117, ext. 235

See below for brief criteria descriptions and nomination forms for USTA Intermountain Section's Annual Award opportunities.

Click here for a complete set of nomination forms.

Organization of the Year Award:
This award is given annually to recognize the services rendered to Intermountain’s USTA members by its member organizations - Community Tennis Associations, Clubs, Park and Recreation Departments, etc.  Section winners are submitted to the USTA for the National Organization of the Year Award.
Click here for the 2009 Organization of the Year Nomination Form.

Family of the Year Award:
This award is presented annually to the family within the Intermountain Section who has exemplified the benefits of tennis as a family recreational sport and has contributed to their tennis community in a significant way.  Sectional winners are submitted for the Ralph W. Westcott USTA Family of the Year Award.
Click here for the 2009 Family of the Year Nomination Form.

Nikos Ridle Award/Junior Award:
This award is given annually to a junior tennis player within the Intermountain Section who exemplifies the spirit of tennis through their activities on and off the court.  The award is given in memory of Nikos Ridle, a nationally ranked junior player from Billings, Montana, who was killed in an automobile accident at age 19.  Section winners are submitted to the USTA for the Bill Talbert Junior Sportsmanship Award.
Click here for the 2009 Nikos Ridle Award Nomination Form.

David Freed Lifetime Service Award:
This award is presented from time to time to recognize an individual's lifetime service to tennis within the Intermountain Section.  This award was introduced in 1988 when it was given to David Freed of Salt Lake City, Utah. David Freed served as Intermountain’s Secretary and Treasurer for 39 years from 1936-1975.
Click here for the 2009 David Freed Lifetime Service Nomination Form.

Jan Dowse Volunteer of the Year Award:
This award is named after the late Utah Tennis Association Executive Director and is awarded to Intermountain’s Volunteer of the Year to recognize his or her outstanding contributions, personal unselfishness and devotion to the game. Jan Dowse served the Utah and Intermountain tennis community for more than two decades and her contributions to the sport she loved are too numerous to count.
Click here for the 2009 Jan Dowse Volunteer of the Year Nomination Form.

Barbara Clark Multicultural Participation Community Service Award:
Initiated in 2000, as the Mulitcultural Community Service Award, this award was renamed in 2006 to honor Barbara Clark, who passed away in September 2006. She was a longtime employee of the Section who was an ambassador for this award. This award is given annually to honor an individual in the USTA Intermountain Section who, through tennis, has made a significant contribution to multicultural populations and communities in our Section.
Click here for the 2009 Multicultural Participation Community Service Nomination Form.

Developmental Coach of the Year Award:
Also initiated in 2000, this award recognizes the outstanding individual efforts of a developmental coach in the Intermountain Section. This Coach is being honored for his or her unending dedication to developing junior tennis players at all ability levels through teaching and coaching, presence at tournaments and events, and the ability to positively impact the lives of their junior players on and off the court.
Click here for the 2009 Developmental Coach of the Year Nomination Form.

Media Excellence Award:
This award is given from time to time to outstanding Media (Print, TV, Radio or Electronic) associations in the Intermountain Section that go above the normal role of media to help promote the game of tennis in their area. Section winners are submitted to the USTA for the National Media Excellence Award.
Click here for the 2009 Media Excellence Nomination Form.



2008 Award Honorees
Master of Ceremonies
Andy Zodin – MIle High Sports Radio

Organization of the Year Award
Liberty Park Tennis Center – Salt Lake City, Utah

This award is given annually to recognize the services rendered to Intermountain’s USTA Members by its member organizations:  Community Tennis Associations, Clubs, Park and Recreation Departments, ect.  Section winners are submitted to the USTA for the National Organization of the Year Award.

Tennis courts were first constructed in Liberty Park in 1915.  For the past 93 years tennis has been played at Liberty Park and continues to be one of the main attractions and activities enjoyed by the public. 

The facility has 16 lighted courts and is located in the heart of Salt Lake City.  Liberty Park Tennis Center has been the host to many outstanding events including:  USTA Boys & Girls 16 Zone Team Championships, Boys and Girls High School Tennis Regional & State Championships, ITA Circuit and Sectional Championships, USTA League District & Sectional Championships and USTA Junior Team Tennis District & Sectional Championships.

Family of the Year Award
Smith Family – Salt Lake City, UT

This award is presented annually to a family within the Intermountain Section who has exemplified the benefits of tennis as a family recreational sport and has contributed to their tennis community in a significant way.  Sectionals winners are submitted to USTA for the National Family of the Year Award.

This year’s family of the year award goes to a family of five that truly exemplifies both recreational and competitive tennis.  The Smith family, Nick, Janice, Scott, Jill and Spencer have participated in tennis at every possible level, from junior to high school to adult tennis leagues.  They have been player, volunteer, coach, team captain, committee members for both District and Section, and have served on the Board of Directors. According to Lindsey Rawstorne, with Utah Tennis, “they have a deep passion and love for the game which has been a very important part of their family”



Nikos Ridle Award
Jessika Mozia – Littleton, CO

This award is presented annually to a junior tennis player within the Intermountain Section who exemplifies the spirit of tennis through their activities on an off the court.  The award is given in memory of Nikos Ridle, a nationally ranked junior player from Billings, Montana, who was killed in an automobile accident at age 19.  Section winners are submitted to the USTA for the Bill Talbert Junior Sportsmanship Award.

Jessika is a highly ranked sectional player. Her dedication and devotion to tennis excellence has earned her a 160 National Ranking. Jessika received the Outstanding Sportsmanship Award at the 2008 USTA Zone Team Championship in Naples, Florida and in 2009 was presented with the Colorado Tennis Associations Margaret Robert Phipps Award for Sportsmanship.

Every year Jessika volunteers many hours to help with the Denver Star Search program and the Highlands Ranch Special Olympics program.  Jessika has also been recognized by the Colorado Academy for community services with the elderly in Denver while demonstrating leadership skills.   In her spare time Jessika enjoys playing the violin.

Jan Dowse Volunteer of the Year Award
Gordon Terpe – Missoula, MT

This award is named after Jan Dowse, former Executive Director of the Utah Tennis Association. Jan served the Utah and Intermountain tennis community for more than two decades, and her contributions to the sport she loved are too numerous to count. In her honor, this award is given annually to the USTA Intermountain Volunteer of the Year to recognize his or her outstanding contributions, personal unselfishness and devotion to the game.

Gordon who is from Missoula, Montana, has been an active volunteer for the tennis community. He volunteers his time at the Montana Tennis Association becoming the first Web master for the Association. He currently produces the “Passing Shots,” which is an E-Newsletter that goes out to over 1,900 USTA members.  He also serves as a Board Member of the Garden City Tennis Association in Missoula. Gordon is a certified USTA roving umpire where he works at college matches, league championships, and various tournaments.


Barbara Clark/Multicultural Participation Community Service Award
Marcos Martinez – Denver, CO

Initiated in 2000, as the Multicultural Community Service Award, this award was renamed in 2006 to honor Barbara Clark, who passed away in September 2006. She was a longtime employee of the Section who was an ambassador for this award. This award is given annually to honor an individual in the USTA Intermountain Section who, through tennis, has made a significant contribution to multicultural populations and communities in our Section.

Marcos is founder and Head of School of Ricardo Flores Magon Academy (RFMA). The Academy prepares Kindergarten through eighth grade students from a multitude of communities in Metro Denver for success in high school and graduation from college. It is located in South Adams County, where test scores are traditionally low and drop out rate high. 80% of the students are classified as English Language learners and as a result receive over 200 minutes of literacy instruction each day.

Through research, Marcos has found that the individual activities of tennis and chess have proven to help with academic success. Therefore, as part of the curriculum, students participate in tennis and chess daily. Both teach determination, focus, and concentration

Developmental Coach of the Year Award
Holger Nickel – Idaho Falls, ID

Tennis is not about forehands and backhands; it’s about people.” This philosophy has guided Holger Nickel in his work as a developmental coach at the local, sectional, and national levels. His tennis community involvement has spanned two continents, four decades, and every level from local to international. A review of his educational and committee work reveals that he has been very involved with junior players. Among the many roles that he has taken on, some of the most recent consist of being a USTA High Performance Coach, currently serves on the USTA National Junior Competition Committee as the Coordinator of Sanctions and Schedules, was a member of the USTA National Youth Competition Committee, served as the Chair of the National Junior Tournament Directors Workshop in 2003 and 2005, and currently is active with the USTA Intermountain Coaches Commission.

Holger has been involved with tennis for most of his life. As a seventeen year-old student in Germany, he initiated programs for juniors when none were in place. Professionally, Holger is a USPTA certified professional, Sectional team coach, tennis director, tournament director, and USTA certified Umpire. At the local level he is heavily involved in a free junior camp sponsored by The Post Register, Idaho Falls’ newspaper, and Key Bank which attracted 600 kids in 2008. Currently, he serves as the Tennis Director for Apple Athletic Club and works with about 140 junior players weekly.

Media Excellence Award
Park City Television/Ori Hoffer – Park City, UT

This award is given from time to time to outstanding media (print, TV, radio, or electronic) associations in the USTA Intermountain Section who go above the normal role of media to help promote the game of tennis in their area. Section winners are submitted to the USTA for the National Media Excellence Award

Park City Television has been around for over 20 years. The television station, which is located in Park City, Utah, has covered numerous local stories. For example, they have covered the Olympics, World Cup skiing, the Sundance Film Festival, and many more. The television station is an Emmy-Award winning station, and despite having a small staff, consistently wins as many or more awards than the network affiliates in Salt Lake City.

Park City TV has featured many tennis stories and local junior tennis players on the station. In 2008, two tennis-related stores were written and produced in Salt Lake City. The first that aired on Park City TV included a special story and video that featured Judge Andrew Valdez that talked about his Tennis and Mentoring program for court ordered youth that he established 13 years ago. The second story and video that aired on Park City TV was a feature story on Wheelchair Tennis and ‘One Up One Down’ Tennis League held at Liberty Park this past spring. While the station is not in Salt Lake City, they have been very supportive of community events in the surrounding area. Accepting this award for Park City TV is Ori Hoffer, the News Director who has been with the station for four years

David Freed Lifetime Service Award
Dean Oba – Salt Lake City, UT

This award is given from time to time to an individual for lifetime service to tennis within the USTA Intermountain Section. This award was first introduced in 1988 and given to David Freed of Salt Lake City, Utah. David served as Intermountain’s Secretary and Treasurer for 39 years from 1936-1975.

Dean Oba is one of the driving forces of the Utah Wheelchair tennis scene.  For many years he has been an accomplished tournament player both locally and nationally.  National Director of Wheelchair Tennis, Dan James, has said “Not only is Dean one of the fastest and most talented players that he has ever scene but hat he is also the
 nicest.”

In 2007 Dean received the David L. Freed Award from the Utah Tennis Association. Dean has spent countless hours helping kids in wheelchair sports of all kind. He has built and donated sports chairs so that other could enjoy the beauty of wheelchair sports. His love of the game and dedication to bringing the game of tennis to others has made him an inspiration for all tennis players.