Samuel Gurary '19 Recruiting Profile

I have been playing tennis from the age of 6 and instantly fell in love with the game. I first began playing in Cleveland Ohio up to the age of 9, until I moved to Switzerland. There I began competing on a local level and was more enthusiastic than ever to proceed in becoming a pro player. However little did I know, this path was much harder than I thought.  At the end of my 3 year period in Switzerland, I moved to Moscow Russia where I attended a British International School and trained with the Russian national team.  Due to my constant movings, I was able to learn French fluently, making me know 3 fluent languages: Russian, French and English. 

As time went by, it became very difficult to maintain good grades in this elite school and play tennis at a high level.  I began playing international tournaments at the beginning of highschool, however I was not able to travel often as my academics would suffer.  After losing time after time due to the lack of tournaments and game play, I understood that it was time for a change. I left the International school with good grades and began online school, called Laurel Springs. This brings us to now, where I am able to travel to tournaments and obtain excellent grades through the  self-education program. I have straight A's inclduding honors Human Anatomy and Physiology and Honors in Algebra 2. 

I am now 17 and I play many ITF juniors and beginning to play Futures 15ks. My greatest achievements are: 1st place in Bosonnance Open 12u, 2 times. 1st place in Moscow Championship 2 times and one time runner-up. 1st place Moscow Championship 16u and many semifinals in ITF/ Tennis Europe doubles tournaments. 

I have lost many times in the past couple years however the thought of giving up has never even went through my mind, in fact I would say that with each loss, my motivation and level only grew.  I have travelled to many tournaments all over the world and played with all levels, which essentially gave me a very deep understanding of the sport. 

 I am determined, motivated and ready to face all obstacles which lie in my path to: firstly be recruited on the best team possible and later play to my full potential on it.