Mats Wilander The seven-time Grand Slam winner takes his traveling tennis clinic to a club near you

    Like many former professional athletes, Mats Wilander enjoyed participating in fantasy camps. It gave the seven-time Grand Slam winner a chance to meet new fans, and teach the game he loves to a new group of people. Every year, Wilander would hold court in Burlington, VT for a group of avid players who would fly in from Las Vegas. Recently, the group told Wilander they couldn’t do it—the travel logistics just became too much. That’s when the idea of Wilander on Wheels was born.
    “I live in Idaho,” Wilander says. “It turned out that traveling to Vermont to do the clinic wasn’t convenient for anyone. So I asked them, ‘Why don’t I just drive down and do the clinic at your club in Vegas.’” The group accepted immediately, and Wilander loaded up his Winnebago and headed south to the desert. Now, Wilander and his business partner, Cameron Lickle, conduct clinics at the home clubs of players around the country. “It’s amazing,” says Wilander. “When you see the players in their own environment, they’re instantly more relaxed. Their families and friends can watch them play. Everyone gets so much more out of the experience.”
    The though of a former US, French and Australian Open champion logging highway miles in a camper to teach tennis might seem more like Hollywood screenplay than reality, but that is because you probably have never met Mats Wilander. “Growing up in Sweden, my family loved camping,” he says. “It was a great way to see the world. About 10 years ago, I moved my family to Sun Valley, Idaho from Connecticut. I wanted them to see how far we were moving, so we traveled in the Winnebago. We couldn’t rent one at the time, so I bought it. We’ve had it with us ever since. Now I camp with my family, but where we go, there are quite a few wild animals, so the camper is much safer than a tent.”
    It was more than a love for camping that propelled Wilander to move his family to Idaho. “My son, Eric, who is 13 now, suffers from Epidermolysis Bullosa (EB). It’s a genetic disease that makes the skin very sensitive to hot, humid weather. One in 50,000 kids are born with it. My wife and I knew that if Eric was going to live a better life, we had to move to cooler, dry climate, and Idaho has been great for him.”
    Wilander has been an active fundraiser for Debra of America, an organization that helps families who have children with EB. “We’re fortunate,” Wilander says. “We have the means to get the right treament and so on, but for other families who aren’t as fortunate it’s a struggle.”
    The Wilander family enjoys Idaho so much, Wilander hosts clinics in Sun Valley as well. “It’s one of the best kept secrets in the world, so we want tennis fans to come up and enjoy everything that Sun Valley has to offer including great skiing and some terrific tennis.”
    If that wasn’t enough to keep him busy, Wilander also does tennis commentary for the Eurosport network, which is available in nearly 60 countries. He also plays in several Masters tournaments against old foes such as John McEnroe and Pat Cash, often at the sites of the sport’s major tournaments. “How great is my life,” Wilander asks? “I get to play the sport I love, teach it to others and talk about it with avid fans around the world. You couldn’t ask for more than that.”           

For more information on Wilander on Wheels, call (787) GET-GAME, or visit wilanderonwheels.com. To read more about finding a cure for EB, visit debra.org.