Emma Thomas and Fiona Dyer, from the Ely sports club Diversity Tennis, gave a talk to share their success in training.
Members of the Ely Rotary Club were given the talk, where they learnt from Emma and Fiona how they set up their own Diversity Tennis club.
The group runs tennis sessions for people with disabilities and long-term health problems of all ages and abilities.
Rotary Club members saw the specialised equipment that Emma and Fiona use in classes, including lighter, colourful tennis balls, smaller racquets, and sports wheelchairs.
Emma and Fiona also cater to different conditions and disabilities by running specialised warm up exercises before a round of tennis.
The pair shared tales of success they'd had with the club, including stories of school children who were anxious about PE lessons now playing tennis regularly with the club and enjoying sport at school.
Other members of the club include those with Parkinson's, dementia, near or total blindness, and deafness.
Some of the members of the Rotary Club of Ely joined in with their exercises, with one member given dark glasses to wear to imagine what it was like to be blind and still play tennis.
The ball that was used in the exercise had a rattle inside it so that the member could focus on the sound it made to help him catch it.
When it became too difficult to do this, he was directed by the coaches to try to indicate which side the sound came from – and that he could do successfully.
Emma and Fiona focus on what their learners can do and work from there.
All of their sessions end with tea and cake, and they run twice a week on Tuesdays and Fridays at The Hive in Ely Leisure Village.
They have walking tennis on Tuesdays, 2:00–3:30pm and wheel and walking tennis on Fridays 1:00-2:00pm.
They also run outreach programmes in Littleport and Witchford.
To contact Diversity Tennis, email: info@diversitytennis.co.uk
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here