Thank you Emma

 Subject: Thank you Emma.

It’s not often we have something to celebrate but last nights US Open Tennis Final between our Teen Queen, 18 year old  Emma Raducanu and that other teen, the 19 year old Layla Fernandez from Canada was a triumph for young people. Both were so mature, so measured in their response to the intense occasion and the accolades heaped on their young shoulders. Each so refreshingly young and unalloyed, one of them had to win and one to lose but they both won our hearts in a well fought match.

Raducanu is one of those hybrid children, brought to England as a young child of a Chinese mom and a Romanian dad, it’s that immigrant story once again but this time we bathe in the glory of "one of ours and not one of them".

Should we perhaps not banish the concept of nationhood, the players often have names that are difficult to pronounce coming from a host of Eastern Europe countries, Belarus , Latvia, Romania, Russia, they all seem to produce champion tennis players who, with driven parents, go on to dominate the sport.

Raducanu is a breath of fresh air with her good looks and happy disposition she exudes what youth should be about, 'the dare to do', taking success and failure in her stride. Life is about seizing the moment yes but also recognising that life is the sum of all the moments not just one. She is a role model to other kids but the kids must realise this kid started when she was five and has worked and perfected her game through thousands of hours of graft and hard work. With a Chinese mother and Romanian father, the diktat of working hard to raise yourself above the pile is in their DNA. Particularly the Chinese parents are known for the hard regime they put their children through if the child has talent but in Emma's case her bubbly self confidence shows a well balance childhood.

So we, and I include myself, seconded by our genes and a lack of the get up and go, take on her mantel of success, if only briefly and for that we must all say, "thank you Emma".