10 TO WATCH IN 2004:
Dennis Lajola
Young tennis wiz heads
to famed Florida academy
Keeping an eye on Dennis Lajola this year will require an atlas, along with a sharp eye for tennis.
Dennis, an Aiea lad who turns 15 next month, left Wednesday for the prestigious Bollettieri Tennis Academy in Florida, beginning a year that will have him adding stamps from South America and Europe to his passport.
The Star-Bulletin is spotlighting 10 people who may have a big impact on Hawaii this year.
The Bollettieri Academy is recognized as the top school in the world, producing such names as Venus and Serena Williams, Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras. Annual tuition is $30,000 a year, but the Lajola family won't be paying it, as Dennis is on a full scholarship from sports agency IMG.
"IMG just called me one time and offered Dennis the opportunity," Dado Lajola, Dennis' father, said. "I thought it was someone making a joke, but it was real."
IMG, which represents the Williams sisters, as well as Peyton Manning and Marvin Harrison in football, has since hooked up Dennis with sponsorship deals with Wilson and Adidas. Not bad for a kid who started playing the game with his brother -- Derrick, now playing for the University of Hawaii -- at the age of 4 to kill time while his father took on all comers at the local park.
Dennis has been one to watch for a while now, earning Hawaii's top ranking for 12-year-olds when he was only 10 and taking the top spot among 14-year-olds two years after that.
He is currently fifth in the country among 14-year-olds and will represent his country in the Davis Cup for his age group in Connecticut after three weeks at the academy. He has already played in two tournaments in France, one in Great Britain and one in the Czech Republic.
After that, Dennis will come home for the National Junior Open before returning to Florida for more instruction. He completes his schoolwork online like the rest of the phenoms.
Dado Lajola said the family agonized over the decision, but at least one influential member of the Hawaii tennis community believes the Lajolas made the right choice, mostly because he has been there before.
When he was Dennis' age, Hawaii Pacific tennis coach Henry Somerville went to California to find competition because he was consistently in the finals of men's tournaments in Hawaii. It never translated to the Grand Slam victory Dennis dreams of, but Somerville doesn't regret the move for a second and hopes it works out for Dennis.
"I would love to see him succeed," Somerville said. "At his age he has gotten more exposure than anyone in Hawaii has ever had, period."
