As a computer science university exchange student from Denmark, Johan Neve could have chosen Montreal or Saskatoon.
Instead, he picked Prince George.
For tennis players and tennis fans in the city, that was a fortunate choice.
It's not every day the 140th-ranked men's singles tennis player from a European country comes to north central British Columbia for an extended stay and Neve, a 24-year-old from Copenhagen, is now living in residence at the UNBC campus on Cranbrook Hill.
Neve toured around B.C. and Alberta last year in the summer and as a lover of nature walks and landscape photography the lure of living in Prince George for a semester at UNBC proved irresistible.
"I kind of fell in love with the country - the people were so nice, they kind of reminded me of Scandinavian people in general, just so welcoming and good people," he said.
"The nature in Canada, it's just so beautiful here. I kind of looked for reason to come back to Canada and it was difficult to find one because it's expensive and I'm also studying in Denmark. But my own university (Ruskilde) has an exchange program with UNBC and I applied for a spot and got it. I could have studied computer science at my own university but the opportunity of seeing some wildlife and getting an experience out of it, it's just a matter of getting out of my comfort zone."
The third-year student has a brain wired for computers and a body built for sports. He plans to play a bit of tennis before the snow flies and says he'd like to try squash and maybe rediscover his talent for gymnastics while he's living in the city.
Neve plays in one of the top tennis leagues in Copenhagen, a city of two million, and as a sponsored player in his club he teaches the game to adults and kids. He certainly schooled his opponents at the recent Angela Lesniewicz Fall Wrap-Up tournament at the Prince George Tennis Club.
Neve lost just eight games in five matches in his run to the singles championship. He beat Ken Stoker of Quesnel 6-0, 6-3 in the semifinals, then swept Thomas Tannert 6-1, 6-0 in the championship match. Neve teamed up with Susie Walker to capture the doubles crown as well.
He played all summer in the second-highest division of club tennis in Denmark and he's been happy with his game lately.
"Tennis-wise, I'm playing better now than I have ever done," he said. "I am quite serious about it, just because I love it. I get free training and membership in my own club and I have a great coach who has been coaching over 30 years. We get that for free just by playing matches for my club."
Neve has played tennis for close to 14 years and got hooked on the game right from the beginning. He climbed through the junior ranks and is now part of a thriving adult league that involves the six clubs in Copenhagen. He's one of the top four players at his B93 club, near the centre of the city.
"We don't have the same system in Denmark as you do in Canada and States, where you can play next to your studies (as a school-sponsored student athlete)," he said. "Every sport or most of them happen in the individual clubs, so it was difficult for me to find time and also money to play more than I did.
"I guess if I really had been motivated about my tennis I probably could have been better than I am right now, but I just love the sport. That's why I'm still in it."
His club has more than 1,500 members, with 19 outdoor courts and four indoor courts. By comparison, the Prince George Tennis Club, which also includes pickleball players, has about 200 members playing on eight outdoor courts. There are no indoor courts in the city.
Neve has been teaching tennis for seven years and he says that's made him a better player.
"I have learned a few things by teaching others and it also keeps me on the tennis court," he said. "Even though I have some weeks where I don't practice my serve I still teach and I don't forget how to serve."
He's played occasionally at the Prince George club with club members and has offered a few pointers but Neve says he doesn't have much time to play. His course load is heavy this semester. He entered the tournament just so he could play a few games but more so he could meet people and get to know them. Club members appreciate the challenge of playing with and against him and that makes Neve feel good about being around the court.
"I would probably enjoy a stay at UBC or Montreal or Toronto as much as I do right now but I just find Prince George so much more authentic," said Neve.
"One of the benefits of being here is the university is so small and the city's small. It's intimate here to really get to know people and I like that. I don't think I would have found the same in a big city."
He's hoping to see a bear for the first time in its natural habitat before he leaves the city in December.
He likes training at the Northern Sport Centre and said he might check out the Prince George Gymnastics Club. As a young boy he spent a full school year in Denmark training as an acrobatic gymnast.
"I went to a school and we did acrobatics from nine in the morning till four in the evening for one year, so I became pretty good at it," he said. "Some of the things I learned I haven't done for quite a while because I missed too much tennis while I did gymnastics."
Neve has agreed to play an exhibition match at the Prince George Tennis Club on Thanksgiving weekend against Kristian Kiland, a 22-year-old Prince George native who finished four years of NAIA college tennis at Doane University in Nebraska and now attends UBC as a masters chemistry student. Kiland started playing on the UBC recreational tennis team last year and is now the 90th-ranked men's singles player in Canada.
"It sounds like a lot of fun and I'm definitely going to do it and hopefully we can arrange it," said Neve. "It will be fun to play against No. 90 in Canada."
