Draped by a glorious Brisbane summer day, kids, parents and Olympic medallists alike were a sea of smiles around Tennis Central during another unforgettable Suncorp SunWise Kids day.
Kids were spoilt for choice on court 22, floating between Nickelodeon stars SpongeBob SquarePants, Dora the Explorer and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles while trading forehands with tennis champions such as Roger Federer and Victoria Azarenka.
They’d never have dreamed of having so many of their heroes on one court, but for 11-year-old Oscar – one of the lucky Hot Shots participants chosen to hit against the Swiss champion – the choice between them was a simple one.
“Ninja turtles for sure.”
Not many around Oscar would’ve said the same, especially Australia’s Olympic gold hurdler Sally Pearson, who was among the more star-struck faces as she joined Federer for a photo.
But, Oscar’s answer might have been swayed today, experiencing the day of a lifetime alongside friends Jed and Charlotte.
> Check out the photos from Suncorp Sunwise Kids Day
After Grand Slam champion Victoria Azarenka and Aussie Nick Kyrgios took on Pearson and fellow Olympic gold medallists Libby Trickett and Natalie Cook in a game Cook quickly turned into a form of volleyball tennis, the trio took the court alongside seven other lucky Hot Shot winners.
With help from Azarenka and Kyrgios the kids faced “The Ballinator”, winning any prizes they managed to hit.
Azarenka with a slight height advantage was the standout winner when it came to collecting prizes, but Charlotte managed to rifle a volley into a toy Patrick Star – not that she managed to hold onto it for very long.
“I won Patrick but I don’t know where he is,” she said.
Then entered Roger Federer to a familiar cheer; admitting every win was crucial at the start of the season he wasn’t going to take it easy on them, but the natural dad was still happy to offer advice such as “bend your legs” and “happy feet”.
When asked if they wanted to be tennis stars, Jed, Oscar and Charlotte nodded in quick harmony and after hitting with them, the 17-time Grand Slam champion became their biggest supporter.
“You never know that’s why you always have to be really nice to them,” Federer said.
Joined by the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the kids smiled with a “Swiss cheese” for a photo that will undoubtedly don mantelpieces for years to come.
There were plenty of tennis superstars to go around on the day, with popular Japanese second seed Kei Nishikori a clear fan favourite on the courts, while fourth seed Kevin Anderson, German Andrea Petkovic and the ever-incredible Serena Williams all made appearances.
Coupled with blushing Olympians and Nickelodeon favourites, no one walked away empty-handed this Suncorp Kids Day, autograph-filled hats, show bags and maxed-out camera memory cards a regularity flowing through the gates by day’s end.
The only thing that tops the goodies are the irreplaceable memories that ensured this Suncorp SunWise Kids day will be one the kids, parents and Olympic medallists at the Queensland Tennis Centre won’t be forgetting any time soon.
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