We’re serving up some seriously exciting news! With just weeks to go until the FISU World University Games kick off in Germany, it’s time to reveal the athletes who’ll be hitting the courts for Team GB Students Tennis.
The international tennis programme at a GB Students level continues to go from strength to strength. At a FISU world level GB Students has collected 18 medals at the summer games since 1967 in Tokyo with 3 Gold, 9 Silver and 6 Bronze medals. This includes medals in the last three World Summer Games that GB has attended, made up with a silver medal for Emily Arbuthnott in Napoli 2019, a silver medal for Jack Findel-Hawkins and Luke Johnson in Taipei 2017 and a gold medal for Joe Sailsbury and Darren Walsh in Guangzhou 2015.
This year’s team representing a mix of top UK and US universities, brings power, precision, and plenty of passion — and they’re ready to take on the world in Rhine-Ruhr.
🎾 Meet the team
• Eliz Maloney – Loughborough University
2024-25 quadruple BUCS champion and Master'U silver medalist Eliz brings a wealth of BUCS tennis prowess to the table. More below.
• Esther Adeshina – University of Tennessee
Esther adds serious firepower to the GB lineup and being a two time Master'U silver medalist will bring her international experience to Germany.
• Grace Heather Piper – University of Southern California
Grace will bring her American college experience to the international stage. In the 2023-24 season she hit a career high of 51 in the singles ITA ranking.
• Jamie Connel – Florida State University
A plethora of college accolades in his locker already Jamie will be raring to go as he steps off the plane in Germany.
• Toby Samuel – University of South Carolina
A key figure on the US circuit and former junior Wimbledon player, Toby brings speed, power, and experience to the team. A career high singles ranking of 414 and doubles ranking of 303.
• Rahul Dhokia – Durham University
One of the UK’s top student-athletes, Rahul combines smart court strategy with strong BUCS experience — an asset to the team.
🎾 Athlete Spotlight: Eliz Maloney – Leading the Charge for GB Students at Rhine-Ruhr 2025
When it comes to British university tennis, one name continues to stand out — Eliz Maloney. And this summer, the Loughborough University star is set to take her game global as she represents GB Students in both Women’s Singles and Doubles.
Fresh off a dominant BUCS season, Eliz has been a key part of Loughborough’s continued success at the top level of university tennis. She helped secure yet another National Championship title for her team alongside the National League title and then individually picked up the Singles and Doubles Championships too.
Eliz was also part of the Master’U team that went to France at the end of last year and secured another silver medal to add to GB Students collection.
On the upcoming games and his team, team coach Alistair Higham said “We are really looking forward to the upcoming games, a multi sport games on this scale is so unique for the players and presents unbelievable opportunities as they move through their sporting careers.”
“Coming off the back of such as successful run at Master'U we’re confident going into the games, and it’s great that our team sprit is enhanced by the wider team spirt of the GB Students.”
“The support from the LTA going into these games and throughout the university tennis structure is vital towards these events and has played a significant role in the medal success we’ve achieved so far”
Be sure to follow @BUCSSport on socials to follow along with the games in Germany as we bring you as much action as we can across Rhine-Ruhr 2025.
Let’s go, GB Students! 🇬🇧💪
