National Bank of Canada : Announces Denis Shapovalov as New On The Ball Ambassador

National Bank is pleased to announce that professional tennis player, Denis Shapovalov, is officially a new ambassador for On the Ball. A program by National Bank in partnership with Tennis Canada, On the Ball recycles used tennis balls to reduce distracting noise in classrooms.

Highlights

• Shapovalov is making his first appearance as an On the Ball ambassador playing on the courts of the Drummondville National Bank Challenger in Quebec that runs until March 19.

• Shapovalov joins current On the Ball ambassadors, Vasek Pospisil and Françoise Abanda.

• A Canadian junior tennis player, Shapovalov broke into the spotlight in 2016 and is quickly rising in the tennis world. Along with his victory of winning the junior singles title at Wimbledon 2016, this Richmond Hill native currently boasts an ATP singles ranking of No. 253 in the world as of March 6, 2017. Shapovalov recently won the Gatineau Futures 2017 tournament, which took place February 27 to March 5.

National Bank's On the Ball

• Now in its 11 year, National Bank's On the Ball program is making great strides for youth by recycling used tennis balls to help facilitate noise-free classrooms that are more conducive to learning and concentration.

• Tennis balls are donated at On the Ball donation bins in partnering tennis clubs and at various tournaments throughout the year, and then distributed to participating schools across Ontario and Quebec. The balls are then used as chair slippers to reduce classroom noise level.

• Since the inception of the program, over 1.4 million tennis balls have been collected and approximately 350,000 students assisted.

• This year National Bank will recycle used tennis balls even further. Once they have been used to their fullest capacity in the classrooms, they will be collected by recovery companies who will transform them into various products, such as tires, auto parts, game modules, shoe soles and tennis courts.

Quotes

'I am very proud to join the National Bank On the Ball team. As a student myself I feel the program is a great fit for me,' said Denis Shapovalov. 'The noise in classrooms can be quite disturbing and affect concentration. The On the Ball program makes a difference in the lives of many young people. In 2016 alone hundreds of thousands of tennis balls were distributed in schools in Ontario and Quebec.'

'At age 17, it is remarkable how much Denis has accomplished in the tennis world. We are very pleased to welcome him as a new ambassador of the On the Ball program,' said Yann Jodoin, Senior Vice-President, Marketing at National Bank. 'Denis is a passionate player and I am looking forward to seeing him bring this passion to support On the Ball.'

Related links

http://www.youth.nationalbank.ca/on-the-ball-program

About National Bank of Canada
With $234 billion in assets as of January 31, 2017,National Bank of Canada, together with its subsidiaries, forms one of Canada's leading integrated financial groups. The Bank has more than 21,000 employees and is widely recognized as a top employer. The Bank's securities are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: NA). Follow the Bank's activities atnbc.ca or via social media such asFacebook,LinkedIn andTwitter.