Christopher Bulus is, by now, one of the most prominently mentioned names in Nigerian tennis, and this fame is absolutely organic.
Nigeria Tennis Live gathered that Bulus started his tennis journey in Lagos State, having been discovered by Mr. Shina Atilola, an ardent tennis philanthropist and member of the Lagos Lawn Tennis Club, Lagos.
He was then handed over to the talented Coach Abel Ubiebi of the Aces Tennis Academy whose precocious handling of the youngster made his talent more obvious for the world to see.
Not only did the Kaduna-born player dominate in the Nigerian junior tennis circuit, he became an instant hit across the continent of Africa, winning laurel after laurel.
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Not only did he emerge as the ITF U18 winner, he played at the All-African Youth Games, African Junior Championship and capped it with a participation at the Junior Davis Cup, among many other laurels, including rising to become no 6 in Nigeria’s national ranking.
And it was after one of the many tournaments Bulus won outside Nigeria that he applied for and bagged scholarship to the New Mexico Military Institute, NMMI, where as usual, he became an instant hit.
At the NMMI, the former K-Pec High School Alapere, Lagos student, helped his school finish 8th at the NJCAA Division 1 Championships in 2019 where he had an impeccable 31-9 record. After a successful spell in Junior College, he headed for the University of West Alabama (UWA), where he continued to shine.
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When he was at the UWA, he was named the Gulf South Conference Tennis Player of the Year after ending the season as the number 4 ranked Division II student-athlete across the nation, and received ITA Division II All-America honors for his impeccable character and performances on and off the court.
From the University of Alabama, Bulus would later move to the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV), from where he started playing to earn ATP points, and it was at this point that he was suggested to the Tennis Innovators Academy.
Cesar Andrade, the Director at the TIA, told Nigeria Tennis Live that “there’s this summer camp where we hire young pros and pay them some money, so, Sadiq (Tswako) mentioned him to us and we connected with him.
“I found out about him, how he lost his parents at a young age, and that caught my attention. He was ranked top 30 in the NCAA at the time. I asked him what his dreams were and it tallied with our plans too and that was how he joined us.
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“At the academy, we are interested in people who have such dreams and this was one of the things that motivated us to stay with Chris”.
Not only was Nigeria’s Bulus very hardworking as a tennis player on the court, his character off it stood him out as one of the most amazing persons to work with.
This, Nigeria Tennis Live gathered, made it easy and seamless for him to get the support of the TIA whose sponsor also took to the tennis star after meeting him.
Andrade revealed that: “We have a sponsor who helps with the trips, so we were able to put together a good package for him with our sponsor which started with the summer position.
“We’re at that place where we’re getting to understand him and what he needs to get him to the next level in his tennis career”.
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On what their plans are for Bulus, the TIA Director was very explicit in his response as he noted that it has been a gradual process which will continue as the player progresses.
“You always have to set goals based on where you are and what you need to do to get to where you want to go, and this is mostly mental.
“Our immediate goal is to get him into the top 500 then we assess and move him into the top 200 and subsequently top 100 to get him to play and make a living for himself.
“He has the full support from the Academy and his sponsor. There are no boundaries even though there are specific budgets for what he needs to do and where he needs to get to,” Mr. Andrade stated.
Curious about how other Nigerian players may benefit from this sponsorship which Nigeria’s star player currently enjoys, our correspondent asked if the TIA was not looking at recruiting other Nigerian players.
Cesar explained that “the requirements for the ideal player is so much and is a lot to deal with. We are open to exploring players, not just Nigerian players, but there are a number of things to look out for.
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“First, we look a the character, who they are as a people. It just has to be the right fit and timing because there is a lot of funding that goes into this recruitment and development”.
Needless to say, Nigeria’s Bulus enjoys the required support to take him where he wants to get to, and this support is what Nigerians are most excited for about him.
Not only has he proven to be Nigeria’s most revered player on the court, he has also proven to be a role model to younger wones who aspire to become tennis superstars like him.
It will not be too long before the whole world starts to hear of the ATP player who is gradually and steadily climbing the ladder of success and greatness.