Internationally Ranked
Born, Bravov, Romania, 1952, Gabriel Neacsu, left, was a member of the Romanian National Tennis Team for five years before defecting to Belgium during a Tennis Tournament, 1972. As a professional tennis player, Gabriel was ranked one of the top 200 tennis players in the world. With his racquet, Gabriel targeted the tennis courts of the world until he met and married a Canadian from British Columbia. Settling in Vancouver, 1980, since that time Gabriel has worked for a number of Tennis Clubs, including the prestigious Hollyburn Country Club, West Vancouver. Over the past 19 years, Gabriel has helped develop some world-class players, including Helen Kellesi and Grant Connell, whose doubles team was ranked #1 in the world, 1993. He also coached and travelled for nearly two years with W.T.A. player Sandra Wasserman, Belgium's top tennis player. Currently working as Head Pro, the New National Youth Tennis Centre at People's Courts, Coquitlam, British Columbia, Gabriel now runs a very successful junior academy where he trains more than 100 children, ages 5-18, including coaching full time the top British Columbia player, Sanjan Sadovich. [Photo, courtesy Gabriel Neacsu]