Beach tennis is a sport that arose from the fusion of racket sports and beach sports. It is played between two players (singles) or between two couples (doubles), although the usual modality is doubles.
It is played with a racket or paddle and a depressurized tennis ball, which travels more slowly through the air than a regulation tennis ball. The game consists of passing the ball over the net (1,80m for men, 1,70m for women) and within the marked limits. Beach tennis emerged in Italy in the early 1970s when tennis players on vacation in Lido degli Estensi played using their rackets and the existing volleyball nets already installed on the beach. Beach tennis arrived on the beaches of Rio de Janeiro around 2008, and the sport now dominates about one-third of the beach-volleyball courts along the Brazilian coast.
Five significant steps in the history of Beach Tennis
1978: The first Beach Tennis championship is played in Torredembarra (ESP).
2008: The ITF Beach Tennis tour is officially launched and players are ranked according to the total number of points attained in each tour event.
2009: The first ITF Beach Tennis World Championships is staged in the historic Foro Italico in Rome (ITA).
2010: The International Tennis Federation recognises Beach Tennis as one of its disciplines.
2012: The first ITF Beach Tennis World Team Championship takes place in Moscow (RUS).
