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By:Eljeric Sumalinog Bontigao
CEBU’s pride Arthur Craig “Iggy” Pantino has started 2017 with a bang after easily winning against Naithaolin Calvin Golmei of India, 6-3, 6-3 in the first round of the main draw of the International Tennis Federation (ITF) Juniors at Chandigarh, India.
The 15-year-old Cebuano netter is bannering the Philippines in three world ranking ITF Junior tournaments which will be held this month in India.
Pantino, a Grade 8 student of the De La Salle Santiago Zobel School in Muntinlupa, Alabang, is the only Filipino netter who was invited to see action in the tournament by the Asian Tennis Federation (ATF) Under-16 squad.
FILE PHOTO
The three tournaments will be held in Chandigarh on January 2 to 7, New Delhi on January 9 to 14 and in Kolkata for the DKS ITF Juniors on January 16 to 21.
Pantino left for New Delhi last December 30 to undergo a training camp in preparation for the three international tournaments.
The youthful tennister said that he was delighted, exulted and feels very blessed for being the only Filipino to have been invited to the event which is being supported by ITF’s Grand Slam Development Fund.
Pantino is currently ranked as the No. 1 player in the 16-under division of the Philippine Tennis Association (Philta) and No. 3 in the 18-Under division. In the ITF Juniors ranking, Pantino sits at No. 290.
Pantino is no stranger to international tournaments as in 2015 alone, he competed in 11 international tournaments including a series of competition in Europe as part of the ITF Under-14 team. He reached the quarterfinal in France in the singles category. He also placed first in a doubles competition in Belgium, Germany. He also reached the finals of the Junior Vietnam Open last July.
According to Pantino’s mother, Lourdes, her son stands to benefit so much from these international events despite being away from his family.
Arthur Craig “Iggy” Pantino wearing black shirt sitting in the photo, he is with his teammate and trainers of the Philippines Tennis Academy (PTA).
“This will be a nice experience for Iggy, as a young person he gets to travel to different places only by himself and that makes him an independent person.”
His mother though laments that her son is often misunderstood and is seen as a spoiled brat.
“Iggy is a very humble person, he won’t even brag to others about his achievements not unless he is asked.”
Lourdes added that what matters most to her son “is his family and those who supports him.”
Pantino is also not only good on the court but he is also an achiever in his academics. This is not surprising as his motto is “Hard work is the best key to success.”
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