Recently crowned French Open boys’ wheelchair doubles champion Ruben Harris admits he is grateful for the support provided by Dumpton & Stelling Minnis Stores, Making a Difference Locally (MADL) and Galaxy Ripple following his latest triumph.

Nisa retailer Sijia He-Xinyang Yu, owner of Stelling Minnis Stores, recently donated £1,000 to the Canterbury wheelchair tennis team through MADL’s Stronger Together partnership with Galaxy Ripple.

The donation directly supported Great Britain’s Ruben Harris from Canterbury Tennis Club who currently sits at number six in the wheelchair junior singles rankings.

That support from the MADL partnership paid off this summer for the 17-year-old as he partnered Austria’s Maximilian Taucher to clinch the inaugural French Open boys’ wheelchair doubles title.

After bowing out of the boys’ singles on Thursday against his doubles partner, Harris once again proved that he and Taucher are a formidable doubles partnership after they defeated Australia’s Yassin Hill and Ivar van Rijt 7-5, 6-4 to lift the inaugural boys’ doubles title – their fifth title together.

In 2023, MADL launched their Stronger Together collaboration with Galaxy Ripple. Galaxy Ripple, produced by Mars Inc., made a £15,000 donation to Nisa’s charity to support young people to thrive, between the ages of 16-25.

There were 15 x £1,000 donations available as part of the campaign, but with 20 eligible good causes entered, all were felt to be very worthy winners so MADL took the decision to provide an extra £5,000 in funding so no one would miss out.

Following his victory, Ruben said: “I’m just really grateful to everyone who has supported me to this point and thank you in particular to Simon Grieve, Nisa and Galaxy for this donation. The costs of being a tennis player on the world stage are tough so all the support really does go a long way. I wouldn’t have been able to win titles like I did at the French Open without this support, so thank you!”

A spokesperson for Galaxy said: “Galaxy is all about creating a world where chocolate does as good as it tastes.  This is about a lot more than creating delicious Galaxy chocolate.

“It’s about the commitment to meaningfully improving lives in cocoa growing communities and by partnering with Nisa, Galaxy can also help support communities closer to home and make a difference locally.”

Sijia added: “I am delighted to see how this funding has helped the team, and particularly Ruben, having given him the opportunity to thrive and be victorious in France.

“Nisa and MADL are committed to supporting our communities, and this donation is a fantastic example of how we can make a real impact on the lives of local athletes.”

Canterbury Tennis Club is the most popular and highly appreciated tennis club in the community and is very popular with young people in our village. Canterbury tennis club encourages young people, not only toward tennis but also with their personal ambitions. Particularly after the COVID lockdown, they work closely with parents to support young people’s mental well-being.

Kate Carroll, Nisa’s head of charity, commented: “It is fabulous to see that our partnership with Galaxy Ripple has had such a positive impact not only locally this time but also on an international stage such as Ruben’s win at the French Open. We strive to support young people get the most out of their ability, so I’m delighted Sijia came forward and supported Canterbury Tennis Club in this initiative.”