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REUTERS SIGNS UP WITH LTA; HINGIS, KOURNIKOVA TO RETURN: THIS WEEK IN TENNIS BUSINESS

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By Leigh Sanders

* Britain’s Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) announced on Monday that Thomson Reuters has become its new Official Sponsor within its commercial program over a three year deal until 2012. As Official Statistics and Information Partner to the LTA, Thomson Reuters will receive major coverage at LTA events, including Wimbledon, and will become the official scoring partner of the AEGON British Tennis Series. Gus Carlson, Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer at Thomson Reuters, said: “We are delighted to be partnering with the LTA, bringing our world-class global expertise in intelligent information to the exciting world of competitive tennis.”

* The USTA has announced that they will be honoring “tennis moms” throughout National Tennis Month this May and have placed multi-Grand Slam winner and mother of three Chris Evert as their spokesperson for the celebrations. The thirteenth annual event looks to increase participation numbers by enticing mothers and their children to play tennis together and looks to build on the positive change in participation numbers over recent years. “Tennis participation in the U.S. is enjoying a major resurgence and National Tennis Month is our annual celebration of the sport,” said Lucy S. Garvin, Chairman of the Board and President of the USTA. “We are using National Tennis Month as a platform to recognize the countless contributions that tennis moms have made to the game in introducing young people to a sport that they can enjoy all of their lives.

* World Team Tennis (WTT) has announced that a deal has been struck with Solfire to be their official kit and equipment provider for the next few years. Solfire will provide outfits for ball kids, officials, staff and some players across all WTT’s franchises and they will also design commemorative clothing to celebrate the league’s 35th year. It increases Solfire’s foothold in tennis after they recently began endorsing stars such as Germany’s Tommy Haas.

* Aussie Open doubles champions from 1999 and 2002 Martina Hingis and Anna Kournikova have announced they will return to Wimbledon this summer to compete in the veteran’s doubles event. It will be the first time Hingis has returned to the All England Club since she tested positive for cocaine and retired from the circuit during the 2007 Championships while Kournikova has not competed since 2003 because of injury.

* Organizers of the Beijing Open are praying for favorable weather this year as their new 13,000 stadium court with retractable roof will not be ready for this year’s tournament. The neighboring 10,000-seater, flower-shaped arena used for the 2008 Olympic Games will host this year’s showpiece and the new stadium court should be ready for 2011. “There is no delay in construction of the structure, just the necessary time to finish off the decoration,” Chinese official He Huali told Reuters.

Anna Kournikova and Martina Hingis
Anna Kournikova and Martina Hingis

* Britain’s Andy Murray has targeted reaching the final of the Madrid Masters because one of Europe’s largest cinemas, based in Madrid, is planning on showing the event in 3D. With sport recently taking up the reigns in following 3D cinema across the continent tennis is the latest to cash in. “It’s pretty amazing the facility they’ve got here,” Murray told BBC Scotland’s Kheredine Idessane. “I want to try and play well here. I’m starting to feel much better.”

* This week’s WTA Rankings (10/05/10) sees Kim Clijsters re-enter the Top 10 for the first time since her comeback. Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez enters the top 20 at 19 for the first time after lifting the title in Rome. On the men’s side, John Isner has also entered the top 20 of the ATP rankings for the first time after his defeat in the Belgrade final and he sits at a career-high 19. Marcos Baghdatis climbs back in to the top 30 at 28.

* Belgian Yanina Wickmayer is in a race against time to be fit for the French Open after undergoing surgery on her left elbow. A spokesperson for the 20-year-old, who reached the semi finals of the US Open last year, said that the injury dated back eight years to when she was knocked over by a car. Alternatively, other reports (Brussels AP) are stating it was in fact surgery to remove a bone spur from her right elbow. Whichever way, recovery time is likely to be ten to twelve days, meaning she will be pushing it tight to enter Roland Garros.

* Novak Djokovic has pulled out of Madrid after failing to recover from his illness and problems with his allergies that forced him to retire from his quarterfinal match-up with young Serb Filip Krajinovic in Belgrade last week. His withdrawal means Britain’s Andy Murray is now ranked third behind Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.

* Tennis legend John Newcombe has undergone skin cancer surgery after a doctor found that the cancer had spread under the skin and caused a growth on the right side of his nose. The 65-year-old, seven-time Grand Slam winner is recovering well and expects to be at Wimbledon next month. He is the second star this year to announce they are suffering from cancer. Martina Navratilova announced she is suffering from breast cancer earlier this year.

* Yanina Wickmayer, Maria Sharapova and defending champion Magdalena Rybarikova head the list of players entering the AEGON Classic at the Edgbaston Priory Club, England, from June 7-13 2010. The draw features 11 of the world’s top 50 players and Francesca Schiavone, Aravane Rezai as well as Britain’s Elena Baltacha will prove other crowd drawers. “It’s fantastic to see such a strong field at the tournament this year,” said Tournament Director Patrick Hughesman in a statement on the LTA website. “These players will produce some great tennis for the crowds to enjoy and the field really sets the tournament up for some exciting matches.”

* Babolat has announced a new format for its Pure Drive model of racquet to coincide with the 135th anniversary of the French brand this year. The Pure Drive first shot to prominence when Spaniard Carlos Moya shot to the 1998 French Open title using it and this is an homage to both player and racquet. The usually blue design will be given a “red clay” colouring to coincide with the 2010 French Open and all Babolat-endorsed players will sport a matching 135th anniversary bag throughout the tournament.

* The International Tennis Hall of Fame and Museum has dated their 2010 Legend’s Ball for September 10th at Cipriani 42nd Street in New York City, which will again coincide with the US Open. The ball honors the legends of the sport and welcomes the new inductees for that year to the fold whilst also benefitting the ITHF&M which is the world’s premier archive of tennis history and memorabilia. This year sees doubles legends Gigi Fernandez and Natasha Zvereva and Aussie kingpins Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde as well as another Aussie doubles legend, Owen Davidson, taking their place in the annuls of the sport. For more information visit: www.tennisfame.com.

* The inaugural London Golf & Tennis Show took place last week at London’s ExCel Centre and was hailed as a resounding success by organizers. The adding of tennis to the annual golf show opened the exhibition up to a new audience and visitor numbers far surpassed expectations. Wilson, Yonex, Babolat, Adidas, Head, Prince and Fila, among others, held stalls at the event and the ATP got involved offering tickets to the ATP World Finals event to be held in London’s O2 Arena once more in November. “Exhibitors I have spoken to have been delighted with the quality of the visitors to the show,” said Colin Brunton, the Golf and Tennis Show Group’s CEO, “and likewise, when speaking to visitors they have enthused about the depth and diversity of our exhibitor base. Everyone had a good time.”

* TournaGrip, Ace Authentic, the International Tennis Hall of Fame, Morfit Performance sports clothing, Peter Kaplan Tennis Academy, State Ultra Bar in Providence, WesthamptonTennis.com and New Chapter Media are sponsors in the first show “World Tennis With Harry Cicma” which will start its second season on the New England Sports Network (NESN) this Saturday at 1 pm and 4:30 pm eastern. “World Tennis with Harry Cicma” will feature five new shows that will air on the third Saturday of each month this summer from May through September. The thirty-minute television show, featuring tennis personality Harry Cicma, features interviews and features from the world of tennis. The debut show will air on the following dates and times; Saturday, May 15 – 1 pm and 4:30 pm eastern; RE-AIR, Tuesday, May 18, 5:00 pm eastern; RE-AIR, Saturday, May 22, 6:30 pm eastern; Cicma reports for NBC Sports & NBCSports.com and was previously the sports anchor and producer at NBC in Providence, R.I., CBS in Springfield, Mass., and ABC in Sioux City, Iowa. He is the co-founder and host of “World Tennis with Harry Cicma” and also served as a commentator for other networks including Fox Sports Net and Tennis Channel and has commentated for World Team Tennis and the U.S. Open tennis championship’s world feed. A former ATP world-ranked doubles player, he was also a standout Big East tennis player at Rutgers University. In addition to airing on NESN, the show will be available globally on the internet at www.WorldTennisMagazine.com and on the WorldTennisMagazine YouTube channel following its airing on NESN.

PIERCE O’NEIL, CHIEF BUSINESS OFFICER, TO DEPART USTA

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WHITE PLAINS, N.Y., January 11, 2010 – Pierce O’Neil, Chief Business Officer of the USTA announced today that he is moving on from his role at the USTA after 15 years of generating record revenue growth for the USTA and US Open.

Pierce ONeil
Pierce O'Neil

O’Neil, former Senior Vice President at IMG and Associate Producer/Director at CBS Sports joined the USTA in 1995 prior to the construction of Arthur Ashe Stadium and the expansion of the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.  From that point forward, O’Neil successfully leveraged the platform of the new stadium and facility to grow the US Open into one of the most successful and profitable sports and entertainment events in the world. During O’Neil’s tenure he signed over $1.0 billion in business for the Association and USTA/US Open annual revenues more than doubled to over $255 million in 2009.  Of particular note, O’Neil is credited with growing USTA/US Open annual sponsorship revenues from $14 million in 1994 to over $60 million in 2009.  O’Neil also led negotiations that resulted in the largest television agreements in the history of the sport.

O’Neil also oversaw all USTA/US Open television productions and operations.  Over 33,000 hours of US Open television coverage were broadcast in over 180 countries around the world in 2009.  O’Neil built the USTA’s Advanced Media department that generated over one billion page views on USTA websites and streamed over 157 matches live in high definition in 2009.

Prior to becoming Chief Business Officer at the USTA, O’Neil served as the Association’s Chief Marketing Officer.  In that role, O’Neil created award winning advertising campaigns, special events such as Arthur Ashe Kids’ Day, PR initiatives and grass root programs that contributed to significant growth in tennis participation throughout America.

“It has been an extremely rewarding 15 years”, said O’Neil.  “I have had the pleasure of working with a great team of people at the USTA and on one of the biggest and most exciting events in the world. In particular, I have had the privilege to work with many exceptional people at our client organizations – many of whom have gone from being important business partners to valued personal friends.”

“Pierce has been a tremendous asset to the USTA over the last fifteen years” said Lucy Garvin, Chairman and President of the USTA.  “His leadership, vision, creativity and skills have benefited the USTA in so many ways.  Pierce has been instrumental in growing the USTA’s revenues to unprecedented levels and in growing the US Open into one of the most successful sports and entertainment events in the world. Thanks, in significant part to Pierce, the USTA is in a very strong financial position. We are grateful to Pierce for his dedication, service, and contributions.  We wish him the very best in his future endeavourers.”

“It has been a pleasure to work closely with Pierce over my two years as Executive Director of the USTA.” said Gordon Smith, USTA Executive Director & COO. “In perhaps the worst economy in history, Pierce was largely responsible for the USTA having the second most successful US Open ever in 2009. For that, as well as for all the other contributions Pierce has made while at the USTA over the last fifteen years, I and the entire Association are very grateful. Pierce should feel a great sense of pride in all that he has accomplished while at the USTA.”