Wimbledon to invest profits in youth plan

Twenty years ago, the pre-tax profit from the Wimbledon Championships, which is handed to the Lawn Tennis Association for the development of the sport in Britain, topped £1m for the first time. The profit from this year's tournament was £32.05m. As in 1981, however, the LTA continues to be frustrated in its quest for home champions.

Tim Henman, from Oxfordshire, competing in his third Wimbledon men's singles semi-final, came agonisingly close to reaching the final for the first time before losing to Goran Ivanisevic, the eventual champion. Henman, 27, and the Canadian-born Greg Rusedski, 28, are the nation's only world-class players, and there are few signs of youngsters with the potential to take their place.

Millions have been invested in indoor tennis centres and various schemes to increase the numbers playing the game and to improve competitive standards. Among the latest plans is a £750,000 mini-tennis programme, a £1m annual budget to educate coaches, and an extra £1m investment in inner-city tennis as part of the LTA's £10m Club Vision campaign, offering financial support to clubs that provide coaching for juniors as well as adult members.

"Kids and coaching are at the top of our list of priorities for new investment and this will make a tangible difference to our future prospects," John Crowther, the LTA's chief executive, said. "We continue to put all the funds available from the latest Wimbledon surplus to maximum use for the benefit of the sport. Targets have been set throughout the organisation with key performance indicators to guide our priorities and maximise effectiveness in all areas."

This year's Wimbledon profit shows an increase of £900,000 on last year. Although shy of the record profit of £33.078m in 1998, this year's Championships drew a record attendance of 476,711 – 30,118 more than last year – and included an estimated 60,000 overseas visitors.