CP Sport have collected a range of profiles from people with CP that participate in sport. We will be posting these profiles daily throughout CP Awareness Month (March) to celebrate positive stories and inspire people to take part in the future.
Name: Nick Jacobsen
Role: Player
Sport: Tennis
Clubs: David Lloyds Club (Northwood)
How did that opportunity come for you to start participating in sport? At the age of 6, I went to my local tennis club and was instantly enthusiastic with wanting to improve in the sport and potentially reach a high standard of play. At the age of 10, I discovered Rafael Nadal who’s game and core values both as a player and person. With this newfound inspiration, my game completely transformed from initially copying Rafa’s style of play to eventually finding and developing my own way of playing tennis. To this day, nearly 23 years later in total, since starting my love and passion of tennis, I have reached a point of now playing competitive Para Standing Tennis around the world (with Europe as a starting point).
What skills have you learnt or improved from participating in sport? Continuously improving my technique despite certain coordination challenges, but one I take on with full dedication and passion in every practice I do.
What are your ambitions in sport? To eventually become a Paralympic Champion in Para-Standing Tennis once it becomes an official Paralympic Sport as well as the big grand slams such as Wimbledon and The US Open. With a recent Para Standing Tennis double gold medal wins at the Malmö Open in Sweden, this has given me a tremendous amount of confidence for my upcoming tournaments, one which is the World Championships in Turin this June.
How have you benefitted from participating in sport? A huge improvement in my Cerebral Palsy in terms of increased muscle mass specifically in my left leg, as well as high endurance being able to play at least 2 hours whether in training or competition. 
Why should other people should give your sport a try? Other people should give tennis a go as not only does it provide major physical benefits with all round fitness, but also social positive aspects where you can meet friendly like-minded people to potentially arrange future matches. Plus, tennis as a sport, provides mental health benefits as there is always a goal for wanting to be better at something whether that is tactical, technical, physical or mental aspects of the game.
Are there any further opportunities you like to see be made available in your sport? The opportunities I would like to see be made available is promoting Inclusive Disability Tennis Clinics in local areas. (with a particular focus on Para-Standing Tennis).
