Tournament Details
Here is what families need to know:
- Event: Advantage, Youth Charity Tennis Tournament
- Date: March 1
- Time: 9:00 a.m.
- Location: Baseline Sports Club, Rethymno
- Age Group: 16 and under (players 12+)
- Registration Limit: 32 children total
- 16 boys
- 16 girls
- Cost: Free participation
- Registration: First-come, first-served
For questions or registration details, families can contact: 📩 alla@ad-youth.com
“Advantage, Youth,” is a special tennis tournament, and March 1 is a day for children — a fun, competitive environment that mixes sport, community, and philanthropy in a way that feels genuinely purposeful.
And yes, it is also a reminder that Crete is not only beaches and tavernas. Sometimes it is also a place where somebody builds an opportunity from scratch and hands it, lovingly, to kids who deserve it.
A Free Tournament for Young Players
Participation is free, and registration is open to players aged 16 or younger, provided they are 12 or older.
But this is not a “show up and good luck” situation. Participants will also receive practical support — the kind that can actually ease the cost burden of training.
The tournament will offer:
- Tennis apparel from US brands
- Suntribe sunscreen
- Gift cards
- Healthy meals and snacks for all players throughout the day
Every participant will receive a certificate and a discount on a high-performance training week at the Justine Henin Academy, providing young players with tangible value beyond a one-day event.
Meanwhile, winners and runner-ups will earn something even more motivating:
- Certificates for free tennis lessons at Baseline Sports Club.
- Certificates for free lessons through “Tennis in Crete.”
The Story Behind Advantage, Youth
Every charity has a slogan. This one has a life story.
The founder of Advantage, Youth, Alla Kravchuk, knows first-hand what it means to want sport more than life itself — and still feel blocked by the practical reality of money.
She was born and raised in Uzbekistan, where high-quality tennis equipment and apparel were out of reach for many families. She remembers her journey with tenderness.
“My Mom, who worked at a big international company at that time, would have had to spend her entire monthly salary to buy me a pair of sneakers. She tried to instill the idea in me that one does not need a specific type of shoe or a shock absorber to become a great athlete,” she told Argophilia in an email interview.
So her mother did what mothers do when they cannot afford miracles: she negotiated, sacrificed, and reshaped reality. She tried to teach her daughter not to obsess over gear, but she also carried a bigger dream: sending her daughter to study at an American college.
She worked two jobs to provide tennis lessons. She negotiated with a local coach who saw potential and reduced the monthly rate. A local philanthropist later gifted a tennis racket after a tournament win.
Piece by piece, with persistence and a little help, the dream became possible.
“Through my persistence, my Mom’s altruism, and a little support from others, I was able to place a full tennis scholarship at a Division 1 University in the United States, get my bachelor’s degree, build a career in finance, and eventually settle down and have a family in a place of my choice – which is Crete,” Alla told Argophilia.
Alla never forgot how close her journey came to collapsing under cost, and she also knows that not everyone gets lucky.
“Through this charity, I want to do something for those motivated children who thrive despite the circumstances, to make their journey a little less difficult,” Alla explained.
A Tournament With Purpose
Advantage, Youth is not trying to “save children.” That language is always a bit insulting.
Instead, this initiative is about supporting motivated young athletes who already have the fire, children who train hard, thrive despite limitations, and deserve to be met halfway.
Advantage, Youth is a small act of justice that gives young players a day that feels celebratory, while also offering a little help and opening doors into better training and stronger confidence.
And if even one child walks away from Baseline Sports Club on March 1 thinking, I can do this, then the day will have done exactly what it was designed to do.
