Tennis One Director Nelson Cuellar sat down with LatinKiwi Radio to share what it actually took to build one of Auckland's most recognised tennis communities — before there was a community to speak of.

🎙️ Podcast: LatinKiwi Radio,  Guest: Nelson Cuellar, Director Tennis One Topic: Migration, Entrepreneurship & Building 8 Tennis Schools in Auckland Watch: YouTube

The Story Behind Tennis One Has Never Been Told Like This

Most people who find Tennis One experience it through a Friday Night Social at Mission Bay, a junior lesson at Pakuranga, or a sold-out event on a Saturday afternoon. They see a club that works. What they rarely see is what it cost to build it.

On LatinKiwi Radio, Nelson Cuellar tells that story in full for the first time.

It starts not in Auckland, but in Colombia with a significant personal disappointment that made staying no longer feel like an option. Nelson made a decision that many dream about and very few follow through on: he left. He arrived in New Zealand with a plan built less on certainty and more on belief. The Law of Attraction, a work ethic that bordered on relentless, and a willingness to start at the bottom of everything.

For a period, that meant working as a barista. Then as a barman. At peak, Nelson was doing up to 90 hours a week across hospitality jobs, not because it was the goal, but because it was the price of staying in the country long enough to build something real. He navigated six different visa categories across his time in New Zealand. Six separate moments of bureaucratic uncertainty, each one a test of whether the plan was still worth it.

It was.

What Perseverance Actually Looks Like

The LatinKiwi Radio episode is an honest conversation. Nelson doesn't package the journey as a tidy success story — he describes the reinvention, the sacrifice, and the years of doing the unglamorous work that eventually compounds into something visible.

For anyone who has moved to a new country, changed careers later than expected, or simply stayed committed to something when the results weren't showing yet — this episode speaks to something real.

What began as an idea, driven by a belief that tennis could be more than a sport and more than a class, has grown into 8 tennis schools operating across Auckland's clubs. Tennis One has been recognised as Tennis Auckland and Tennis New Zealand Club of the Year 2024–25. The courts are busy. The waiting lists are real. The community that now gathers every week at Mission Bay is the result of a decade of showing up before anyone was watching.

Nelson's story is not exceptional because the outcome is impressive. It's exceptional because of what came before the outcome.

LatinKiwi Radio and the Latino Community in New Zealand

LatinKiwi Radio tells the stories of Latin Americans building their lives in New Zealand — the real ones, not the highlight reel. Nelson's episode joins a library of conversations about migration, identity, entrepreneurship, and the particular kind of courage it takes to begin again in a country where you are starting from zero.

For Auckland's Latin American community, Tennis One has always been more than a tennis club. The culture Nelson has built reflects his own journey — one that values hard work, genuine connection, and a belief that belonging is something you build, not something you're handed.

This episode is a chance to hear that culture explained in his own words.

Watch the Full Episode

🎧 Watch on YouTube → https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBgag_J4gZQ

Want to Be Part of What Nelson Built?

Tennis One runs beginner to advanced programmes for adults and juniors at Mission Bay and Pakuranga year-round. Whether you are brand new to tennis or returning to the game after years away, there is a programme for you.

Follow @tennisone_nz on Instagram for events, community updates, and highlights.

Book your first session → clubspark.kiwi/tennisone

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