Mark Tepes is just a regular guy.
He goes to work, spends time with his wife, Jamie, and daughters Samantha, Julia and Tori, and always keeps busy around the house. In his extra time, he just so happens to be a pretty good tennis player, too.
Tepes left Thursday for the 33rd ITF Seniors World Team Championships in Antalya, Turkey, where he will represent the United States as a member of the Italia Cup (35s) team for the second straight year. Action in age divisions 35-55 will compete March 18-23 on Ali Bey Resort’s red clay courts.
The ITF Seniors World Team Championships is the senior tennis equivalent of the Davis Cup and Fed Cup competitions.
“It’s exciting to represent your country,” Tepes said. “The training is tough, but it’s worth it.”
In 2012, Tepes and the Italia Cup squad finished sixth out of 19 teams in San Diego. This year, he’ll be one of 40 American athletes joining 1,000 players from 31 countries.
Tepes has plenty of past success away from the Italia Cup. A former high school star and collegiate standout at Virginia Tech, he won the USTA indoor championship in Brunswick, Maine last June. In August, he was a semifinalist at the 35s Grass Court Championships.
For the past several months, Tepes spent time amping up his training and practice sessions. Many nights, he can be found running sprints from mailbox to mailbox in his Medford, N.J. neighborhood.
He thanked his family for their support, as well as speaking about the importance of Dave Okun (Berlin Voorhees Tennis Center) and Rick Hoffman (Cherry Hill Health & Racquet Club) for tennis training, as well as Patti Ann Finch (Escape Fitness) for off-court training.
More info on the Championships can be found here.
