Jorge Capestany, manager of the DeWitt Tennis Center at Hope College, has received the 2015 PTR/TIA Commitment to the Industry Award from the Professional Tennis Registry and Tennis Industry Association.

The national recognition was presented on Thursday, Feb. 19, during the 2015 PTR International Tennis Symposium, held in Hilton Head, South Carolina.  Capestany was honored for his long-standing commitment to tennis and the PTR.

“Jorge has always had the best interest of the tennis industry at heart,” said Jolyn de Boer, executive director of the TIA.  “He has always been involved and a big supporter of what the TIA, and the industry overall, is doing.”

“Jorge Capestany is a gift to the tennis industry,” added Michele Krause, national manager of Cardio Tennis, a TIA initiative of which Capestany is among the original speakers and trainers.  “His contributions have impacted every segment, from youth tennis, Cardio Tennis and professional development through website education.”

It is the second time in as many months that Capestany has received major recognition.  In January, he received the 2015 Karen Page Distinguished Service Award from the Michigan High School Tennis Coaches Association (MHSTeCA).

Characteristically, Capestany’s participation in the Feb. 19-22 symposium included giving back.  Co-chair of the PTR Education Committee, he made two presentations to tennis pros from more than 65 countries.

Manager of the six-court DeWitt Tennis Center since the fall of 2003, Capestany is a 32-year veteran of the tennis industry.  He is one of only 10 people world-wide that is a Master Professional with both the PTR and the United States Professional Tennis Association (USPTA).

He has coached hundreds of ranked juniors, including three national champions.  In his career, at Hope and previously, his programs have developed more than 180 high school state champions in Michigan.

Capestany has hosted many PTR workshops and Midwest Conferences at DeWitt, where every teaching pro on the staff is PTR certified.  He has been published in numerous industry publications, including several articles in the PTR magazine “TennisPro.”  His three books include the “PTR International Book of Drills,” and he originated PTRtennis.tv.

He is also the founder of two prominent tennis industry websites: a coach’s website, www.TennisDrills.tv, which features more than 1,000 tennis drills and has subscribers in more than 65 countries; and a player’s website, www.JorgeCapestany.com, which features free tennis instruction.

Capestany has been a frequent speaker at professional conferences all over the world, including not only the PTR International Tennis Symposium, but the USPTA World Conference on Tennis; the USTA’s Tennis Teachers Conference at the US Open in New York; the PTR Asia Tennis Symposium in Shanghai, China; the ITF worldwide Coaches Conference in Cancun, Mexico; the Norwegian Tennis Conference in Oslo, Norway; the Canadian Tennis Federation Coaches Conference in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; and many regional and national conferences around the United States.

Capestany has been named the “Michigan Pro of the Year” six times by either USPTA or PTR.   The Midwest Division of the USPTA has honored him multiple times through the years, including with induction into its Hall of Fame in 2012, twice as “Midwest Professional of the Year,” twice as “Facility Manager of the Year” and with its “Outstanding Education of the Year” award.  In February 2012 he was named the PTR Member of the Year by “Racquet Sports Industry” magazine.

As manager of the DeWitt Tennis Center, Capestany also manages the college’s outdoor Vande Poel-Heeringa Stadium Courts, which since opening in 2012 have received national awards from both the United States Tennis Association and the American Sports Builders Association.  He also serves as an assistant coach for the Hope women’s tennis team and directs the college’s Summer Tennis Academy.