Sport continues to provide us with inspiring stories - the latest being the incredible tale of Shane Lowry, who claimed the British Open by six strokes at the weekend.

Stories like his drive all of us who choose elite sport as a way of life. I say this because at times it can be a very lonely job as athlete or coach - the highs can be very few, with many challenges waiting on almost a daily basis, be they mental, emotional or physical.

Someone asked me the other day, 'why do athletes endure a sporting life if the highs are so few?'

During part of my answer I explained about the level of the highs - yes, there are many lows, many challenges - but when the highs come, they are very powerful and very intense, I suppose you could say it's hugely addictive.

I also explained that you are part of a family that travels on the journey all together - it's that feeling of camaraderie, closeness, and a focus on a mutual aspiration which also attracts millions to this way of life.

When we talk about the challenges, and the lows, it's fair to say that Shane has experienced a few himself.

It was only a year ago when he, a very disappointed and frustrated man, was sat crying in a car park at the 2018 British Open at Carnoustie Golf Links in Scotland.

He was on his way to missing the cut at a fourth straight Open, after an opening-round 74, and it was at this point he decided that it was necessary to break ties from his long time caddie Dermot Byrne - a major decision, at a very low point in his season.

After his win, he was interviewed about this, and said: "I cried, Golf wasn't my friend at the time. It was something that became very stressful, and it was weighing on me, and I just didn't like doing it. And look what a difference a year makes, I suppose."

This really supports what I am saying about the addictive nature of sport. Sometimes it can deliver very uncomfortable periods, but the hopes and dreams of the athletes - and also the coaches and support team - ensures the strength, drive and motivation is there for the team to navigate through those periods.

What an inspiration Shane is for many athletes out there, grinding it out and pushing on through the dark spells - the dream may sometimes seem impossible, but it's often the level of belief that keeps the athlete driving on, and my goodness, Shane showed us how this is done!

Sport develops a personality and character that will, more often than not, create an incredibly tough individual, a person who can set their sights on a dream and who is mentally tough enough to take the challenge on. Shane clearly has that in droves.

It's mental toughness, and the skills that deliver it, that fills 50% of my work at The Hub. Almost every day, I receive e-mails from athletes all over England inquiring about our mental skills programme, and how they can access it.

Athletes can work for literally years, developing technical skills, tactical awareness and knowledge, but when the big moments arrive, when they are asked the hard sporting questions, it's not skill that lets them down, it's the mind, their personality and character.

Many athletes are now very much aware of this area, and more than ever they are including this component into their training programmes.

For me, golf is one of the most challenging sports mentally. I can understand that many would ask, how can a sport that is delivered with two feet on the floor, with no dynamic directional movement like football, tennis, basketball or boxing, be so mentally demanding?

The answer is quite simple - because it's all focused around trying to hit a very small ball, with a very small surface area, a very long way, into a very small hole.

The technical pressures are extreme - a millimetre, or much less to the right, left, up or down on contact will see the flight of the ball take a trajectory that can be way off target.

It's this defined and intense pressure that affects the mind, so much so that golfers are often affected by 'the Yips', and anyone reading this column who plays golf will know exactly what I am talking about!

Shane's father, Brendan, was himself a sporting star, a man who played the very hard sport of Gaelic Football in Ireland, and he said that it was tough trying to keep Shane from getting nervous during his younger years - he even used to hide while he was watching him, to try and help him keep calm.

How incredibly inspiring for all those young athletes out there, who may right now not be in the best place mentally and emotionally - you can endure, you can come through.

And there was no hiding for Brendan on Sunday, he was waiting on the 18th green on Sunday to meet his son after he claimed perhaps the greatest prize in all of golf.

That's the message to take home - keep believing, keep enduring, and keep dreaming big!

The mother of two tennis superstars is coming to Ipswich as a special guest at a fundraiser to help more people get into the sport.

Judy Murray, mum to Andy and Jamie Murray, is patron of the Elena Baltacha Foundation, launched in honour of the former Ipswich-based British women's number one after her death from liver cancer at the age of 30.

Ms Murray will be a VIP guest at a fundraising dinner in October, which will celebrate leadership in sport and business and raise money for both the Elena Baltacha Foundation and Ms Murray's foundation.

Well-known for her famous sons, Ms Murray is also a star of the sport in her own right, having led the Great Britain Fed Cup team and coached her boys en route to international stardom.

The event at The Hangar, Kesgrave Hall, on Thursday, October 10, is being organised in conjunction with the law firm Birketts.

Jonathan Agar, chief executive of Birketts, said: "We are delighted to have played a small part in making this event a reality.

"It promises to be a wonderful occasion, bringing together these two great foundations to celebrate women in sport and business."

Ms Baltacha, known as Bally, was born in the Ukraine, but moved to Scotland and later Ipswich due to her father Sergei Baltacha's career as a professional footballer.

Her passion for tennis started at a young age and in 2000 she was given a wild card entry to Wimbledon.

From here her career grew until she eventually became Women's British Tennis No.1 - a title that she held intermittently between 2002 to 2012.

After her retirement from professional tennis in 2012 due to ongoing injury her and her husband Nino Severino, who was also her coach, set up The Elena Baltacha Academy of Tennis (EBAT), based in her hometown of Ipswich, to fulfill her long-term dream of helping get more children playing tennis.

Following her death in 2014, the foundation was created in order to keep her legacy alive.

Ms Murray's foundation aims to bring tennis into rural and disadvantaged areas in Scotland.

Tickets for the black-tie event in October cost £1,140 for a table of 12 (£95 per person) to include a three-course dinner with wine and music from the Matt Hodges Jazz Band.

-Tickets can be booked by contacting Vicky Solomon from the Elena Baltacha Foundation by email here.

-For more information about the event email Wendy Henderson from the Elena Baltacha Foundation here.

As chairman of The Elena Baltacha Foundation I am involved in many areas of programme delivery for young people, this means lots of fund raising to ensure my team and I can continue to keep providing high quality opportunities for pupils in sport.

Last year I delivered a presentation at Ipswich Town Business Breakfast Club, and I was approached by two very special ladies who were about to change my life - their names are Jennifer Leeder from Birketts Solicitors and Sue Tasker from the Milsoms Hotel Group.

Part of my presentation included the story of how my late wife Elena and I met, our life on the world tennis tour and our love that eventually led us to marry in 2013, they both said they were incredibly touched by our story.

All three of us stayed after everyone had left, just simply chatting about all things sport, business and life in general, little did I know that this was the beginning of a friendship that would lead to some very exciting opportunities.

At the end of our chat we all decided to arrange a coffee meeting at Milsoms Kesgrave Hall, to continue our discussions and explore how we could all work together.

We discussed many options. Sue is heavily involved in events at all the Milsoms Hotels, she suggested we considered a Gala Dinner as part of a fund-raising schedule.

This very casual coffee led to a very big and official meeting at the corporate head office of Birketts Solicitors in Ipswich, and what a first meeting it would prove to be!

The experience was one of complete positivity. I was surrounded by a boardroom of professional women, I looked around the table as they were all interacting, and I thought to myself 'this is incredible' - I have never experienced anything like it, no egos, just huge talent, and a focus on making something special happen in Ipswich.

One of the group asked me if I knew of a female in sport that could attend as a special guest of honour, I responded immediately, and said Judy Murray.

I informed the ladies that I would reach out to Judy, to see if she would consider a collaboration between The Judy Murray and Elena Baltacha Foundation's, However, with the specific date we had in mind, the chances of Judy being able to commit to this opportunity were extremely slim indeed.

But then, back in March, I received a text from Judy, it simply said "10th Oct ok, count me in, perfect to link our foundations, Bally would love that." This was the point when everything changed. I sent out messages to all the team, the response was instant and dynamic, we were all super excited, we were now managing an event that would see one of the most famous women in sport visiting Ipswich to head up a major event!

The original group of ladies who were around that boardroom table during the first meeting have been incredible.

Jennifer and Sue were joined by Sharyn Scott, Marketing Campaigns Manager for Birketts, and other outstanding members of the business community such as Fiona Coe, and we are now moving towards the October 10 at Milsoms with great expectations of delivering a unique fund-raising event.

The event is officially supported by many entities, including our World Governing Body, the WTA, they will ensure that our evening will feature some of the biggest names in global tennis.

The friends we have around the foundation have served us well, they have all reached out across their network and we have some incredible sporting celebrities from around the country who will travel in especially for the event, the list includes some very high-profile names.

I must thank people including Gina Long, MBE, who heads up the incredible charity GeeWizz, and has been tireless in her support for our event, while my very good friends Rob Houston from Barclays Premier Account Division and Jason Turner, Director of Barclays Private Bank, have ensured we will have a team of helpers from the bank's staff.

The evening will be a complete sell-out, but, as a member of the columnist team for the EADT/Star, I would love to see some of my readers at the event. With that in mind I am holding two tables of 12 that will each be hosted by a sporting star, so if you would like to attend what will be a memorable night, please contact me nino@elenabaltachafoundation.org.

I look forward to seeing you at what should be an incredible sporting night for our great town!

As the Director of The Hub it's my responsibility to ensure we connect with and support as many athletes across England as we can - our current portfolio stretches all the way from Liverpool down to London.

One athlete who we have built an incredible relationship with, and who is actually now one of our official Hub ambassadors is a very special woman called Ramla Ali.

So all at The Hub were so very proud to see her play a part in a global story this week, involving the Duchess of Sussex, Megan Markle, who served as Guest Editor for British Vogue and their front page "Forces for Change" which will be available on Friday.

Ramla is an exceptional young woman and a world class athlete, a global Nike ambassador who is attracting world wide attention. She is also involved in major projects with major companies such as Beats by Dre headphones, involving other superstars like Serena Williams.

But it's this Vogue front page which has created a global story, and its incredible to see one of The Hub's ambassadors at the centre of this.

Ramla is on a mission to become the first boxer ever to represent Somalia at an Olympics, but it's not just personal aspirations that make this incredible athlete stand out.

She also leads a wonderful project in London called Sisters Club, free weekly women's boxing sessions, encouraging ladies from all backgrounds to get fit, socialise and integrate through her wonderful spot of boxing.

Ramla is one of 15 women who have been picked by Vogue as individuals who break barriers, and she called this "an absolute honour", as it is for us to be associated with such a great athlete, and person.

The other 14 women who feature are:-

- Jacinda Ardern, New Zealand's Prime Minister;

- Adwoa Aboah, a model and a mental health campaigner;

- Adut Akech, a South Sudanese model who is the child of a refugee who emigrated to Australia;

- Sinead Burke, an Irish woman who is a leading academic and disability activist;

- Gemma Chan, an Oxford law graduate who earned herself global celebrity status in the box office hit, Crazy Rich Asians, and was involved in the very powerful Time's Up campaign, a movement to fight against sexual harassment in the film industry;

- Laverne Cox, a transgender advocate, who starred in the Netflix hit show Orange Is The New Black, and broke barriers by becoming the first ever transgender person to be nominated for a prestigious Emmy award back in 2014;

- Jane Fonda, a legendary actress who is also a prolific writer and political activist;

- Salma Hayek Pinault, a Hollywood film star who has committed her life to diminishing violence against women and the discrimination they face as immigrants;

- Jameela Jamil, a TV presenter committed to ensuring that women work hard for body positivity through her "I Weigh" campaign;

- Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, an award-winning Nigerian novelist;

- Francesca Hayward, a Kenyan-born British ballerina who earned her place in the cast of the new Cats film;

- Greta Thunberg, the Swedish schoolgirl who led youngsters around the world in protests against climate change;

- Yara Shahidi, a model, activist and founder of the Eighteen x 18, aimed at helping young people of her generation to become more engaged with politics;

- Christy Turlington Burns, a model who founded "Every Mother Counts" a foundation focused on making child birth safer.

As I type the list of these incredible women of strength, resilience, power and talent, it really is very hard for me to express the enormous pride I feel that we are so closely connected with Ramla Ali.

I talk about Ipswich shouting loud and proud about its sporting achievements, and I feel no embarrassment or awkwardness to proudly write about this great athlete, who is very quickly becoming a global sensation, and has chosen the Hub, based in our region, to support her sport science needs.

Ramla will be visiting The Hub very soon, in preparation for the World Championships in Russia, and I look forward to sharing news of that trip with you.

If you're a sports fan I think it's safe to say that you were pretty satisfied with watching some world class performances last weekend.

Sunday delivered a sporting feast - Lewis Hamilton winning a record sixth British Grand Prix at Silverstone, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer playing out the longest Wimbledon Final in history and, of course, England were crowned Cricket World Cup champions at Lords.

I am very privileged to able to say that I am well positioned to comment about the world of cricket, as I spent five glorious years around this incredible and unique sport, and enjoyed every minute of it.

The cricket journey started for me while I was working at a tennis academy in London. I was coaching some tennis players when I noticed a small group of people watching on court side - I did not recognise any of them, so I just continued with my work.

Once I finished, the senior coach at the academy introduced me to them and in particular one very important person who was to change my sporting life and start a pathway that would see me visit some of the biggest arenas in world cricket - his name is Alan Butcher, and at the time he was the coach for Surrey Cricket Club.

Within in a week I was invited to visit the magnificent Cricket Oval Ground in Kennington, London, now known as the Kia Oval, and what a first experience of the world of cricket it would be for me.

I will never forget arriving, the staff were incredible and the legend Alan himself gave me a tour of the stadium, including the players changing rooms, where he told me about some of the incredible cricket stories that took place there.

This visit included a coach delivery session with the first team, who included some great cricket names, such as Mark Ramprakash and Mark Butcher, I could quite frankly write a whole year's of columns on the great memories I have of Surrey Cricket team, the Oval, and Alan!

News of the work I was delivering in the field of dynamic movement was spreading in the cricket world, and this led to Mark Robinson, head coach of Sussex Cricket Club contacting me.

Mark was an exceptionally skilful coach, now coach of the Women's England Cricket team. During my time at Sussex, I was privileged to see them winning the double in one year, and will always cherish the access I had to the players in the lounge as they waited to field and bat - cricketers are an incredible breed, and being around them is without doubt a learning experience.

After my work with Surrey and Sussex the representatives of the ECB approached me to be involved in the National cricket educational programme.

I am very proud of my time with the ECB and have a memory bank full of incredible experiences, delivering at Lords Cricket Ground, at Edgbaston, and at the ECB's National Academy at Loughborough University, working around great coaches such as Peter Moores and Freddie Flintoff's personal bowling coach, Kevin Shine.

My work with England cricket led me to be part of their national training video that was shot in La Manga, Spain - this is a very special memory as it involved my late wife, Elena Baltacha, who was British No.1 at the time.

So it's no surprise I joined the millions who celebrated our great victory over New Zealand at the weekend - and what a match it was, said by some to be one of the greatest of all time.

The victory was sweet and well deserved, no doubt, but there is a very significant story within this story, and that's the one of Ben Stokes.

Funnily enough, in some strange way, for me personally, it links into the very interesting work I am involved in at the Ipswich Town Academy with Bryan Klug, Lee O'Neil and Jimmy Reynolds.

The management team have given me the task of developing a mental skills programme, which involves coach development, and last night I left the training ground very late, after an incredible coach discussion session, about the champion mindset and why the very best athletes in the world have it.

I think it's safe to say that Ben Stokes has experienced an extremely challenging phase of life, his personal life only recently was played out in full glare of the media, a very stressful experience for anyone.

It made me think of Professor Steve Peters' great book, The Chimp Paradox - he writes that life is not fair, the goalposts keep changing and there are no guarantees, either in sport, or life.

It's these aspects that the greatest athletes in the world overcome and conquer, and it's these life challenges that Ben has taken on and, through mental strength and resilience, delivered the performance of a lifetime, securing himself a place in sporting history.

Who would bet against him soon being named Sir Ben Stokes - and what an incredible life story that would be!

We are now in the final days of the World's most famous tennis tournament, Wimbledon, and the end of what has been a simply incredible experience for me, members of The Elena Baltacha Foundation, parents and players who we support.

We are lucky enough to have a great relationship with the WTA, which means that we can take some of our young players to each of the big grass-court tournaments put on in the UK over the summer - Nottingham, Birmingham, Eastbourne and the big one, Wimbledon - where they get to enjoy VIP, behind-the-scenes access.

It goes without saying that this an exceptional opportunity for our players, and this year provided incredible memories for the girls.

Part of these memories will be one event in particular that will form part of tennis history - a future star of the tennis world emerged at Wimbledon 2019, the brilliant 15-year-old Corie Gauff.

It all came about as a result of a chance meeting I had during an event called "Celebrating Our Champions", an evening spent with Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova, honouring their great rivalry and now, great friendship.

On the table I was seated at there were two ladies who were very excited about Wimbledon, and for a very good reason - the player that they had been supporting for over five years was playing in the first round the following week.

I did not know it then, but this baby-faced young female athlete would rock the world of tennis by knocking out the legendary Venus Williams and then reaching the second week and fourth round of The Championships. Her name of course, is Corie Gauff!

Anyway, on arrival at Wimbledon, we collected our accreditation and made our way to the players' entrance, where our first experience would set us up for a day that none of us will ever forget.

As we were walking towards the entrance a car approached, and the girls got very excited wondering which player was sitting inside.

The door opened and the greatest clay court player of all time emerged, the iconic Rafael Nadal! He approached the security team to get his bags checked, and the girls made sure that they were closely tucked up behind him, next in the line.

Rafa was incredible, he took time to chat to them and take a picture that they will all cherish for a life time.

As the day progressed Wimbledon and the WTA had arranged some incredible opportunities for the girls - meetings with Venus Williams, Nick Kyrios, Sloane Stephens and the legend that is Kim Clijsters.

There was one player who was not on the list, and one, that I thought could offer an incredibly motivational and inspirational experience, the aforementioned Corie Gauff.

By the time we arrived at Wimbledon, Corie, or Coco as she is affectionally called, was already a global sensation and it was almost impossible for anyone to get anywhere near this tennis prodigy.

It was at this point that my chance encounter with Marilyn Mertz at the earlier event would offer us a chance of meeting Coco.

Marilyn knew all about The Elena Baltacha Foundation, and all we try to achieve for young tennis players in the Ipswich area, so I hoped that she would feel she could some how create an opportunity to meet this rising young star.

I called her, and with absolutely no hesitation she agreed to help. It was all arranged at Aorangi, the area where all the players train and warm up, where we had the opportunity to watch her train for over an hour, and then a specially arranged opportunity to meet her, her father, mother and her whole support team.

Coco could not have given us any more attention, care and interest - she spent 25 minutes chatting with all of them, and it really was a dream come true for these girls who had watched this talented teenager beat Venus on Court One just a few days before.

Coco spends part of her time training in the USA and part at the World Famous Patrick Mouratoglou Academy in Nice, France, and during our conversations we discussed the opportunity of some of our players visiting this mecca of tennis.

Now wouldn't that be an incredible chance of a lifetime for our girls - training on the court next to their newest friend, Coco!

This week saw the end of the footballing dreams for England at the semi-finals stage of the FIFA Women's World Cup.

But it would be fair to say that the achievement of the squad has impacted a nation of young girls who will now embrace the Beautiful Game, and be part of the growth that will undoubtably take place.

It's this growth that will play a very big part in England bringing back the Women's World Cup one day.

As an elite coach to both junior and senior athletes across many sports, I make it my job to try and understand talent, and how this talent develops into sporting greatness.

Through my studies, what has become very clear to me is that very often ignition points kickstart an era of brilliance. And, because of the success of the England women's team, I believe this is what we will now experience in the UK in women's football.

Because of the Lionesses, a nation of girls will now be inspired - but this inspiration, and of course motivation, will need to be capitalised on by our governing body the FA and, following this, a strategy, a plan of action and easy access to this wonderful game for girls across the UK.

Then, the hard work begins. This is where the army of coaches will need to step up to the plate and embrace their responsibility of delivering quality coaching - this phase of foundation work will form the beginning of a wave of female footballers that will learn the craft of football, and one day emerge as the future Lionesses who will bring that famed trophy home.

These girls will be carrying on the legacy of the current team, and they will build on all that has been achieved in France this year.

The team was led by a strong woman and a footballing star, Steph Houghton, who has conducted herself so well at the very highest level - she has been a leader of a group of women who have not only been role models to a nation of young girls, but also to a generation of young aspirational boys as well.

I say boys as well because Steph and the team have been such a high-profile story, which in my opinion will affect all, not just the many millions of girls who would have followed the high quality action they witnessed on our television screens.

I hope that the missed penalty will not now define Houghton - sport is full of ups and downs, and the media must focus on the greatness that has been achieved.

On a day-by-day basis I listened to coverage that represented not only the footballing skill of the England team, but also the broader achievement which proved that the ladies are incredibly professional in all departments.

The way they act away from training and competition, across their media duties, the way they have treated the fans and their overall attitude to be respectful to the badge has been first class.

I was also impressed with the cross-sport focus when Houghton and the team were searching for inspiration, it gave me a great sense of pride that they turned to my primary sport of tennis for this motivation.

It was a chance meeting with the great Serena Williams that was the source of this inspirational focus at the hotel the team was staying at, and the comments that Serena made after watching the team train.

The tennis icon praised the team's fitness, work ethic and gym routines, calling the group 'amazing'.

Houghton said: "For her to say that about us is amazing for this squad. That's what we want to pride ourselves on, the hard work, the ability to be one of the fittest teams in the world and to be really humble in everything that we do, so for someone of that calibre and so much status to say that about me and my team-mates is unbelievable and I'd like to thank her for that."

I have no doubt that the England women's team will continue to grow in global reputation and stature - and I believe that the team can aspire to reach the sporting status of legends like Serena Williams.

What an incredible story that will be.

My role as The Director of The Hub keeps taking many different twists and turns, the latest one seeing my life path trajectory crossing with a child prodigy.

This has happened to me once before, with a junior tennis player called Holly Fisher, who was seen as many as a potential global super star.

So much so, that she was the youngest tennis player in the world to have a Nike and Wilson racket sponsorship deal, with major sports agents already interested in her at 12 years old.

I was brought into Holly's support team to manager all her off court programme, and spent a good number of days a week in London ensuring I could provide her with the level of support needed.

Some of the training was delivered at the National LTA Training Centre in Roehampton. I accompanied Holly to the under 14 European Championships where she represented Great Britain.

The latest prodigy to enter my life is from a sport I never thought I would be involved with, it literally never crossed my mind, but life can, so often throw the unexpected at you, and this is definitely what has happened in this case.

Opening my e-mails every morning is an exciting event in itself, I simply never know what to expect, last week delivered an extra ordinary message, it was from a gentleman called James Grant, he is the grandfather of a very talented young sportsman.

I started to read the e-mail, the more I read, the more I became very interested in this particular young man, who hailed from the world of speedway, his name is Drew Kemp, if you are a speedway fan, you will recognise his name.

After a few e-mail exchanges, both James and I agreed to have a conversation over the phone, I was very much looking forward to finding out a lot more about this incredible young man.

During the conversation it was obvious how proud he was of his grandson, he said he had heard lots about me and The Hub, and how we had developed the reputation for supporting athletes across many of the areas of athlete development.

He explained that Drew was now taking on the next phase of his life, and how this would make great demands on his body and mind. We had a very long discussion, and agreed that it would be a good idea for Drew to visit our base at IWIC.

As soon as I finished the conversation with James, I begun a bit of research on Drew, which only confirmed what I had been told, to be honest, James was being very humble about his grandson, who has simply been described as an exceptional talent.

He has just completed an incredible first season and now finds himself competing in the senior world of speedway at the tender age of 16, an incredible achievement for such a young teenager.

He has already been compared to the current world champion Tai Woffinden by many in the sport. So, as you can imagine, I was really looking forward to meeting this young man, it was a meeting that lived up to all my expectations, but in very different ways.

As soon as Drew walked into my office, the first thing that struck me, was how young he looked, my first thoughts were how can this young man compete against hardened, seasoned, tough and experienced grown men in such an aggressive and physical sport as speedway?

As we talked, it quickly became obvious that this very humble, intelligent, young man, is simply driven by a hunger to be the very best.

These massive hopes and dreams that Drew possesses, gives him an incredible drive that you would normally only find in fully grown senior athletes. The longer the meeting went on, the more we discussed his speedway life, my experience told me,

I was in the presence of a true prodigy, there is something very special about this young man, that was quite obvious to me.

This year, Drew is already riding at number one for Kent, in National League, and number two for Sheffield in the Championship League. He has also made his international debut in May, making the semi-finals in the World U21 Championships, this will now be followed by him representing Great Britain in the World U21 team finals in July.

He is also an Ipswich Witches asset.

The Hub has delivered some incredible personal experiences for me, and has connected me with outstanding teams, coaches and athletes, it has created a sporting world around me, on a local basis that I could only have dreamed of, Drew, continues this exciting journey for me, and will challenge my skills in terms of becoming another member of his very dedicated support team.

Our portfolio now consists of National teams, Olympians, EIS official World class athletes, and who would argue that potentially, we now have the opportunity of playing a small role in the life of the future Speedway World Champion!

I always look forward to writing my blog, but this week was extra special - because I can talk about the amazing success story of Jo Konta, our top British tennis star, who capped an incredible clay court season with a French Open semi-final fight-off against the teenager Marketa Vondrousova.

Considering clay is not Jo's favourite or most successful surface, this year has been an outstanding season on the "dirt" as it is called in the tennis business.

It's probably safe to say that Jo's clay swing this year has exceeded all expectations, with that run in Paris adding to her making finals in both Rabat and the massive Premier WTA Tournament in Rome.

Within the tennis fraternity, the clay surface is seen as a perfect run in to the grass court surface, conditioning the lower body to cope with the demands of the grass, and the low and fast balls you see on that surface.

So now all eyes and attention will be on arguably the greatest tennis tournament in the world, Wimbledon, where Jo will face the most incredible pressure as the home star.

I think she is ready to take this on - I truly hope her form continues, and she has an amazing Grand Slam on her home turf.

I am pleased to say that I was very close to Jo's life when I was involved in tennis, and both Elena and I witnessed her progression.

I can write without exaggeration that her rise has been absolutely the stuff of sporting dreams. Fulfilling tennis goals and making it on the World Tennis Tour is an incredibly hard achievement to pull off, as many players and families who have tried can testify to.

But Jo has not only achieved WTA Tour status, she has become a global tennis star - this is nothing short of a miracle from my perspective, and such an amazing achievement for so many reasons.

I watched Jo as a young, up and coming player over a number of years, and for many reasons, her experience was not a great one.

Every time Elena and I watched her play at the national training centre, we always thought she had something very special but, for some reason, her tennis world just couldn't come together, and we watched her experience some very difficult periods.

I'm so pleased to be able to write about the special friendship that Jo and Elena developed. Jo was coming through the ranks, and Elena was a senior player, who would help and support any young British talent coming through.

I remember Elena having a very soft spot for Jo, she would talk about her in a very warm and supportive way, and genuinely wanted the best for her.

Tennis players have a gruelling schedule travelling around the world, literally competing in all four corners of the globe, and Jo was no different - she was digging in and fighting hard to achieve what she knew she was capable of, but unfortunately during this early period it really was not going well for her.

I remember once we saw her in the lounge at Dubai airport and, believe me, her experience then of the World Tour was completely different to what she will be experiencing now as a global tennis star.

Jo was on her own, grinding it out, digging deep, being strong and believing in herself and her hopes and dreams. Elena asked her to join us, and it was lovely seeing them chatting, clearly were very comfortable with each other.

Another time that really stands out for me, was at the US Open Grand Slam. Again Jo was on her own, this must have been so very tough for her, and proves what an incredibly strong woman she is.

Elena came over to me and said: "Jo is on her own tonight, I'm going to ask her to join us for dinner."

This really was a reflection of my wife, a compassionate, caring, supportive person - anyone who has experienced the world of top level tennis, will know this is not something that is offered on a routine basis!

We took Jo to our favourite restaurant, Di Tony's, one of the best Italian restaurants in New York. I have memories of this evening like it was yesterday, Elena and Jo chatting away, it was a great change for us, and a lovely experience.

I remember after one of Jo's great Grand Slam semi-final matches, she was asked to appear on the Jonathan Ross Show. I watched her answering the questions with such clarity, confidence - looking every part, the tennis star she had become.

I could not help but think back to that very special night in New York, those days when Jo was fighting hard, digging deep, on her own, being so strong. She has fought her way to the top the hard way, the tough way, and has proved herself to be an incredible role model to the many millions of girls around the world who are all now fighting for their dream, and probably fighting a very tough battle.

I texted Jo three years ago, I asked her if she would become an ambassador for The Elena Baltacha Foundation, she texted back immediately, accepting my request, and I am sure that a big part of her acceptance was the fact that Elena and Jo had a very special relationship.

Only a few months ago, Jo showed what an incredible ambassador she is, taking time to have photos with one of our foundation players at the historic Federation Cup match at The Copper Box in London.

Jo is an exceptional woman, as well as an outstanding tennis player. I know my wife would be very, very proud of her.

I recently posted a blog about sport being a solution for those finding themselves straying off the straight and narrow and into unacceptable behaviour. I wanted to follow this up by using a high profile sports personality who found sport as their saviour.

The person I want to focus on is Anthony Joshua, who currently is the heavyweight boxing world champion.

This in itself is an incredible achievement, but what makes this near to a minor miracle is the fact that Anthony did not start boxing until he was 18 and for me, as an ex-fighter, that is mind-blowing.

Anthony would be the first to admit that he has not always been the great role model that he is today, and he was close to a life of crime in his youth.

It could have all been so different if he had not committed 100% to a sport.

Sport embeds certain aspects into your life – focus, routine, and mental and physical discipline. All great elements that protect young people from the negative temptations in life.

Anthony Joshua is not the only young man to be saved by sport, the list is endless, but he is a shining example.

I believe the earlier a child adds sport to their life, the better.

It’s fantastic to read that the ex-England defender Rio Ferdinand has found love again. As a widower I know the emotional trauma that this man has had to endure, and I wish him and ‘Towie’ star Kate Wright all the best for the future.

Reading this story took me back to when mine and Rio’s life paths crossed, it was one of those pivotal events that affected me and my life.

I invented a training system called Footsport Dynamics and presented it at a professional sports conference at the NEC in Birmingham.

Some of the Manchester United representatives attended and watched my demonstration and, on my drive back home, I got a call from my office saying that they had bought the system.

Within a week I was on my way to the world-renowned Manchester United training ground at Carrington.

I set my equipment out and waited for the under-18 squad to appear, there was a door that I was told they were going to come through and I was expecting a group of young players with big dreams.

What happened next was a moment I will never forget!

There was a big bang, the door flung open and a young first team player called Wayne Rooney came bounding energetically into the training area. He was followed by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Ruud van Nistelrooy, Ryan Giggs and Rio Ferdinand.

Rooney was very friendly and started some banter and I had an inspirational conversation with Ole, before seeing Rio and the rest of the first team members all moving outside for their training session.

I then did what I was there to do and delivered the session for the under-18 players.

All of us go through life changing moments and this experience validated how much I loved working with elite athletes, and motivated me even further to keep developing my craft and see where this life path of coaching would take me!

I’m privileged to say I have some great people from the world of sport in my life, Judy Murray being one of them.

Not only was she a great support to me when Elena was fighting cancer, but also after Elena passed, she was there, unconditionally.

Judy has in the past, wrongly been seen as quite a hard personality, a tough tennis mum, but this could not be further from the truth.

I’m so pleased that through her involvement in Strictly Come Dancing the public have connected with her and have got to know the real Judy Murray, a warm, intelligent lady with a great personality.

I’m looking forward to telling you all about Judy’s involvement on a local level as a patron of The Elena Baltacha Foundation.

She has been there right from the beginning when Elena asked her for support when we were working hard to get the foundation off the ground.

Judy absolutely loved Elena and she said yes immediately when asked. She has visited Ipswich on a number of occasions and has represented the foundation nationally as well.