Hi there, my name is Simthandile Mantile. I'm also know by my friends as Gary, so you can call me that too. Next to me in the picture is my daughter, Siyolise Schultz, also know as Siyo.

Siyo picked up her first racket when she was just 3 years old on courts in New Brighton (known as Blawa by locals), Port Elizabeth, in South Africa, where she and I grew up.

Her coach then was Siya and he spotted and nurtured her talent.

She has not dropped a racket since then.

She went to the Tennis Academy for 5 years but wasn't very happy there, and she wanted me to coach her, so I did. And I have been since then.

She is 15 years old now and ranked number 6 in the Junior Tennis Rankings in South Africa. She has the courage of a lioness and the strength of a leafcutter ant. Her path has been far from easy, but she has risen to the challenge each time . We see a clear path ahead of us to the French Open Juniors at Roland-Garros in June 2027.

She needs to rank above the 100 best placed Juniors in the world by then, to get an entry, so she needs to pick up ITF points along the way.

In June and July this year, she will be training at MKG Tennis Akademie in Cologne, Germany and then she will compete in ITF tournaments in Europe in August and September.

The cost of the Tennis Academy is £2,000, flights are £1,500, accommodation is £1,000 and food and tournament fees are £500.

I am reaching out to you to help Siyo on her way to Roland-Garros in June 2027.

Thank you!

Gary