John Bryson (LGS 1974) has a passion for tennis – a love he credits his mum with instilling in him. John explained, “My mother was a big tennis player and fan of the sport and bought me a 10/6 tennis racquet from Woolworths, I think it was in 1964. I used to play up against a wall at home, joining Loughborough Lawn Tennis Club as a junior in 1966.”
John’s involvement in tennis has spanned decades – “I umpired in the professional game from 1980 to 1995. I spent 10 years as a Chair Umpire on Centre Court at Wimbledon. I also officiated in the USA and Germany (both West and reunified). So basically, I umpired nearly all the top players of that period. One thing that was a big no-no was socialising with the players.”
There are certainly some well-known names today that John could have socialised with and who he umpired games for, including John McEnroe, Boris Becker, Andre Agassi, Pat Cash, Sue Barker and Tracy Austin – just to name a few.
Having retired from actively playing tennis in 2001 at the age of 46 due to a back injury, John has found other ways to support his love of the sport – mainly through volunteering. John holds several voluntary roles – from Media Officer at Loughborough Lawn Tennis and being on the management team for the County Championships to being a tournament Press Officer and Liaison Officer at the Dan Maskell Indoor Centre at Loughborough University. All of John’s roles have one common theme – they all aim to promote tennis and encourage members of the public to try the sport.
John said, “After seven years as Club Secretary of Loughborough Lawn Tennis Club, I felt it was time for a change of role, so I moved to the Media Officer post at the club at the March 2024 AGM.
“My involvement with the county association, Tennis Leicestershire, has grown in the last two years as well. I joined the County Championships management team in 2019. As well as general involvement in the running of a large county event – for the last fourteen years we’ve been the largest in the country in thirteen of them, runner up in the fourteenth – I am the tournament Press Officer.
“In early 2023 I joined the county Media and Events team. This involves liaising with the external county press and BBC Radio Leicester. For the latter I arrange for members of Tennis Leicestershire to be interviewed.
“The Summer of 2024 saw me take over as the Tennis Leicestershire Liaison Officer for professional events at the Dan Maskell Indoor Centre at Loughborough University. There are anywhere between one and four professional events a year at the venue, and I made my debut at the Lexus British Masters just before Christmas. My role involves recruiting students from the University to assist as and when required. Plus, I oversee them, as well as assist myself, working with the Tournament Director and Referee.”
You may ask why John dedicates so much time to tennis instead of enjoying a quiet retirement – “I have the time and the interest and I get a lot of pleasure from doing it, plus I feel I’m putting something back to the sport.”
John also keeps himself busy by working match days for a semi-professional football club, playing league table tennis and getting back into the amateur musical scene.
Summing up his commitment to tennis, John said, “Do I enjoy myself with this involvement in tennis? My answer is, it’s an absolute pleasure.”
