Seniors tennis partners take provincial title

By Katherine Grant
For NewsNow

Wayne Saigeon proudly carried the banner for the Niagara Region during the opening ceremonies of the Ontario 55+ Summer Games in Windsor and Amherstburg last week.

It was a great beginning that got even better for Saigeon and tennis partner Barry Bray when the pair took the gold medal in the Over 75 Men’s Doubles Tennis for Ontario.

Saigeon and Bray put in a stellar performance – they were undefeated – to win the provincial championship.

The win qualifies them to move on to the Canadian Championships, the date of which hasn’t yet been determined.

“I was surprised by the gold,” said Saigeon. “There were a lot of good players.”

The summer games, for athletes over age 55, are held every two years. This year’s edition attracted 1,400 of the top athletes from across the province in sports such as cycling, swimming and slo-pitch.

Saigeon and Bray qualified for the games after defeating a number of competitors from across Niagara in Welland in the spring.

At last week’s games, they faced the top competitors from across the province, the pair from Cornwall were among the toughest.

“We had a few anxious moments where we really had to focus,” said Saigeon. “We were down 3-1 to Cornwall and came back and won five games straight.”

“Carrying the banner for Niagara was pretty neat,” he said, adding they were representing not only Niagara athletes but also the Grimsby Tennis Club where both men are members.

The games were divided up between the cities of Windsor and Amherstburg from Aug. 19-21.