Olympic Tennis 7/28-8/5/2012

[TalkAboutTennis]

PRESS RELEASE
18 April 2012

First two entries confirmed for 2012 Olympic Tennis Event

The ITF today confirmed the first two entries for the 2012 Olympic Tennis Event after Tripartite Commission Invitation places were allocated in the women’s singles to Stephanie Vogt of Liechtenstein and Veronica Cepede Royg of Paraguay. The Olympic Tennis Event will take place at the All England Club, Wimbledon on 28 July – 5 August 2012.

The Tripartite Commission consists of representatives from the IOC, National Olympic Committees (NOCs) and the ITF, with invitations available for singles players from nations with small Olympic teams. At the 2012 Olympic Tennis Event, Tripartite invitations are being allocated in the women’s singles only, so there will be two additional ITF places in the men’s singles event. ITF places are awarded by the ITF Olympic Committee to players who do not receive a direct entry.

Vogt, 22, receives a Tripartite invitation for the second time, having had to withdraw from the Beijing Olympic Tennis Event though injury. She reached a career-high ITF Junior World Ranking of No. 5, and is currently ranked No. 258 on the WTA rankings. Vogt has played 12 Fed Cup ties for Liechtenstein and won five titles on the ITF Women’s Circuit. She will become the first player from Liechtenstein to compete in the Olympic Tennis Event.

Cepede Royg, 20, will make her full Olympic debut having competed at the 2010 Singapore Youth Olympic Games. She has played 24 Fed Cup ties for Paraguay and broke into the world’s top 200 for the first time in 2012, currently standing at No. 212. Cepede Royg has been a member of several ITF/Grand Slam Junior Touring Teams supported by the Grand Slam Development Fund. She will become the first player from Paraguay to contest the Olympic Tennis Event since Rossana de los Rios in 2000.

The entry process for all other places in the tennis event is ongoing. Direct entries will be based on the official world rankings of Monday 11 June. Nations will then be advised which players are eligible for direct acceptance, and can submit their player nominations to the ITF and make applications for ITF Places. The full list of entries (men’s and women’s singles and doubles) will be announced on Thursday 28 June. Entries for the mixed doubles will be confirmed on site during the event.

In the singles events, there will be 56 direct acceptances, with eight ITF places in the men’s singles, and six ITF places and two Tripartite Commission Invitation places in the women’s singles.

In the men’s and women’s doubles events, there will be 24 direct acceptances and eight ITF places. In the mixed doubles event, there will be 12 direct acceptances and four ITF places.

A maximum of six men and six women will be allowed per country, with a maximum of four singles players, two doubles teams, and two mixed doubles teams. Entries for mixed doubles will be taken from those players already competing in singles or doubles.

For further information, visit the ITF Olympic Tennis Event website: www.itftennis.com/olympics

- ENDS -

[Ribbons]

Marc Lopez out of both Roland Garros and Olympics doubles because of the death of his father. :-( Granollers pairing up with Montanes for RG.

http://www.marca.com/2012/05/27/teni...338125295.html

[kandi]

Oh no, how sad for Marc - he's been playing so well just recently too -
sorry about his dad.

[TalkAboutTennis]

MARY JOE FERNANDEZ AND JAY BERGER
NAMED COACHES OF 2012 U.S. OLYMPIC TENNIS TEAMS

U.S. Fed Cup Captain and USTA Head of Men’s Tennis
To Lead Olympic Teams in London

Dan James Named Coach for U.S. Paralympic Wheelchair Tennis Team

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y., June 5, 2012 – The USTA, the governing body for the sport of tennis in the U.S., announced today that U.S. Fed Cup Captain Mary Joe Fernandez and Jay Berger, USTA Player Development Head of Men’s Tennis, have been named as the women’s and men’s coaches for the 2012 U.S. Olympic Tennis Teams. In addition, Dan James, Head U.S. National Wheelchair Team Coach, has been named coach for the U.S. Paralympic Wheelchair Tennis Team.

The 2012 Olympic Games will be held July 27 – August 12 in London, England, with the tennis competition being staged July 28 – August 5 at the All England Lawn Tennis Club at Wimbledon. The 2012 Paralympic Games will be held August 29 – September 9 in London with the tennis competition scheduled for September 1-8 at Eton Manor in the Olympic Park. The Olympic competition will begin 20 days after the completion of The Wimbledon Championships.

“With Olympic tennis being held at the hallowed grounds of Wimbledon, the Olympics add another dimension to what will be a memorable summer of tennis,” said Jon Vegosen, Chairman of the Board and President, USTA. “Tennis as a sport benefits greatly from being showcased on such a prestigious international stage as the Olympics. Each of the coaches who will be representing the U.S. brings experience as an accomplished player and coach, with a unique ability to connect with the athletes to lead our quest for 2012 gold.”

“I’m honored and thrilled to be selected as the Olympic coach,” said Fernandez, who led the U.S. Fed Cup team to the final in two of her first three years as Captain. “Some of my fondest tennis memories are from the Olympics and the incomparable thrill of winning a gold medal. I would like nothing more than to share in that Olympic experience with our team this summer.”

“We have some very strong players who should all be medal contenders in London,” said Berger, who has been the USTA Player Development Head of Men’s Tennis since 2008. “I know the American men have been looking forward to competing for gold at Wimbledon, and will relish the opportunity to compete on one of the biggest stages in sport.”

The 2012 U.S. Olympic Tennis Team will consist of up to six men and six women, with a maximum of four men and four women competing in the singles competition and a maximum of two men’s and two women’s teams competing in doubles. The U.S. will also be able to place a maximum of two mixed doubles teams in the competition, which will be contested at the Olympic Games for the first time. Olympic Team nominations will be made using the ATP World Tour and WTA rankings as of June 11. All team and staff nominations are subject to approval by the U.S. Olympic Committee.

The United States has won 17 Olympic medals in men’s and women’s tennis since its return as a full medal sport in 1988 – more than any other nation. U.S. players have won 12 medals at the Paralympic Games, including a gold and a bronze in 2008.

The 2012 U.S. Paralympic Wheelchair Tennis Team will consist of a maximum of four men and four women in the wheelchair singles competition, with no more than two doubles teams in the wheelchair doubles competition. In the quad wheelchair competition (limited movement or strength in at least three extremities), a maximum of three players may compete in the event, with a maximum of three in the singles event and one team in the doubles event. Team nominations will be based on ITF Wheelchair Tennis World Rankings as of May 21, 2012, and are subject to approval by the USOC.

“The Paralympics is the ultimate platform for worldwide competition among outstanding wheelchair athletes,” said James. “It is a tremendous privilege to coach at the highest level of international play and I am eager to begin our quest for medals.”

Wheelchair tennis was introduced to the Paralympic program in 1988 as an exhibition event before becoming a full medal sport at the 1992 Paralympic Games in Barcelona. Paralympic tennis is an open competition, eligible to those athletes with a mobility-related disability and all competitors must compete in a wheelchair.

The USTA was officially designated by the USOC as the national governing body for the Paralympic sport of wheelchair tennis in June 2002, becoming the first Olympic national governing body to earn this recognition. As the national governing body for wheelchair tennis, the USTA manages wheelchair tennis in the United States, including the sanctioning of tournaments, overseeing the ranking systems, creating and managing a High Performance program for developing elite disabled athletes and coaches. The U.S. Olympic Committee will approve all team and staff selections.

# # #

[TalkAboutTennis]

TENNIS CANADA NOMINATES FOUR PLAYERS TO CANADIAN OLYMPIC TEAM
Nestor, Pospisil, Raonic and Wozniak eligible to represent Canada at London Games

**Please note: Aleksandra Wozniak will be available to the media at 2 p.m. ET today at Uniprix Stadium in Montreal.

Toronto, June 13, 2012 – Tennis Canada announced Wednesday the four players nominated for selection to the Canadian Olympic Team for the London 2012 Olympic Games. Daniel Nestor (Toronto), Vasek Pospisil (Vancouver), Milos Raonic (Thornhill, Ontario) and Aleksandra Wozniak (Blainville, Quebec) will represent Canada in London. Raonic and Wozniak will play singles while Nestor and Pospisil will team up for doubles.

In singles, the Top 56 players in the world as of the June 11 rankings deadline receive direct entry into the tennis event provided they meet all other requirements set out for qualification. Raonic sits at No. 21 in the world while Wozniak’s third round appearance at the French Open lifted her to the exact cut-off point of No. 56. It will be the first Olympic Games for both.

“Ever since I came back after my health issues, I always said that my main goal was to play in the Olympics,” said Wozniak. “After a difficult few months last year, I’m proud to have gotten my ranking back and positioned myself to have a shot at playing in the Olympics. It would be an honour for me to represent Canada and if that were to happen, it would be for me a second dream come true.”

For the doubles event, each of the Top 10 players receives direct entry with a compatriot of their choice. As the No. 1 doubles player in the world, Nestor has elected to play with first-time Olympic hopeful Pospisil. The duo holds a 2-0 Davis Cup record, including a pivotal win against Grand Slam champions Jonathan Erlich and Andy Ram during Canada’s World Group play-off versus Israel last September.

London will represent the fifth consecutive time Nestor has represented Canada at the Olympic Games. At the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games, he won gold with partner Sebastien Lareau marking the first, and only, tennis medal in Canadian history.

“I’m very proud to be in a position where I can represent my country and hopefully bring back another medal,” said Nestor. “It was quite a special feat winning Olympic gold in Sydney in 2000 and with the growth of tennis in our country, we all can have a chance to make Canada proud.”

The International Tennis Federation (ITF) will announce the full official list of entries on June 28 which will include the ITF places in singles and doubles. Additional nominations for players who did not make the rankings cut-off can be submitted to the ITF to be considered for ITF places.

“Congratulations to these four tennis players on joining the 2012 Canadian Olympic Team,” said 2012 Team Chef de Mission Mark Tewksbury. “I know you will give your everything to make Canadian fans proud in London.”

A total of six men and six women per country are allowed to participate with a maximum of four singles players, two doubles teams and two mixed doubles teams per draw. Entries for mixed doubles teams will be taken from those players already competing in singles and doubles.

The Olympic tennis event will take place from July 28-August 5 on the storied grass courts of the All England Club in Wimbledon.

Immediately following the London 2012 Olympic tennis event, all Canadian players will return to Montreal and Toronto to play Rogers Cup presented by National Bank from August 4-13. Nestor, Pospisil and Raonic will play at Rexall Centre in Toronto while Wozniak will play at Uniprix Stadium in Montreal.

About Tennis Canada

Founded in 1890, Tennis Canada is a non-profit, national sport association responsible for leading the growth, promotion and showcasing of tennis in Canada. Tennis Canada owns and operates two of the premier events on the ATP and WTA Tours; Rogers Cup presented by National Bank men’s and women’s events that rotate annually between Rexall Centre in Toronto and Uniprix Stadium in Montreal. In addition, Tennis Canada owns and operates seven professional ITF sanctioned events and financially supports nine other professional tournaments in Canada. Tennis Canada operates junior national training centres/programs at the Centre of Excellence in Toronto, Uniprix Stadium in Montreal and the North Shore Winter Club in Vancouver. Tennis Canada is a proud member of the International Tennis Federation, the Canadian Olympic Committee, the Canadian Paralympic Committee and the International Wheelchair Tennis Association, and serves to administer, sponsor and select the teams for Davis Cup, Fed Cup, the Olympic and Paralympic Games and all wheelchair, junior and senior national teams. Tennis Canada invests its surplus into tennis development. For more information on Tennis Canada please visit our Web site at: www.LoveMeansNothing.ca.

[skatingfan]

Do we have any official confirmation of the direct entries into the Olympics or is just going to be announced on a country by country basis? And do we know when the ITF/IOC will announce the wildcards?

[hurricanejeanne]

Do we have any official confirmation of the direct entries into the Olympics or is just going to be announced on a country by country basis? And do we know when the ITF/IOC will announce the wildcards?

It's not super official, but as per one of the masterminds of WTAWorld who have the patience to keep track of these things here's the list I got for the WTA

Four singles player from each country allowed
A player must have made herself available for Fed Cup for 2 of 4 years between Olympic Games
Draw format:

56 Direct Acceptances, based on the recognised World Ranking of 11 June 2012
6 Final qualification places (ITF Places)
2 Tripartite Commission Invitation places

Players in RED don't qualify due to national quota (4 players per country) or due to not fulfilling Fed Cup requirement.

Olympic order | Ranking | Name | Points | Nationality

Race as of 9th June 2012

(assuming Szavay and Bacsinszky will use their Special Ranking to enter Olympics):

(1) 1 Maria Sharapova 9490 RUS1
(2) 2 Vika Azarenka 8800 BLR1
(3) 3 Agnieszka Radwanska 7230 POL1
(4) 4 Petra Kvitova 6895 CZE1
(5) 5 Samantha Stosur 6180 AUS1
(6) 6 Serena Williams 5700 USA1
(7) 7 Caroline Wozniacki 4366 DEN1
8 Marion Bartoli 4070 FRA1
(8) 9 Angelique Kerber 4055 GER1
(9) 10 Sara Errani 3350 ITA1
(10) 10 Na Li 3335 CHN1
(11) 11 Dominika Cibulkova 3180 SVK1
(12) 12 Vera Zvonareva 3160 RUS2
(13) 13 Ana Ivanovic 3070 SRB1
(14) 15 Sabine Lisicki 2697 GER2
(15) 16 Kaia Kanepi 2519 EST1
(16) 17 Flavia Pennetta 2470 ITA2
(17) 18 Andrea Petkovic 2421 GER3
(18) 19 Maria Kirilenko 2295 RUS3
(19) 20 Roberta Vinci 2165 ITA3
(20) 21 Lucie Safarova 2085 CZE2
(21) 22 Jelena Jankovic 2080 SRB2
(22) 23 Nadia Petrova 2005 RUS4
(23) 24 Daniela Hantuchova 1950 SVK2
(24) 25 Julia Goerges 1945 GER4
(25) 26 Petra Cetkovska 1945 CZE3
(26) 27 Francesca Schiavone 1920 ITA4
(27) 28 Anabel Medina Garrigues 1835 ESP1
(28) 29 Christina McHale 1750 USA2
(29) 30 Monica Niculescu 1735 ROU1
(30) 31 Shuai Peng 1730 CHN2
(31) 32 Jie Zheng 1730 CHN3
33 Svetlana Kuznetsova 1701 RUS5
34 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 1681 RUS6
(32) 35 Klara Zakopalova 1630 CZE4
36 Mona Barthel 1511 GER5
(33) 37 Yanina Wickmayer 1510 BEL1
(34) 38 Carla Suarez Navarro 1466 ESP2
(35) 39 Tsvetana Pironkova 1401 BUL1
(36) 40 Simona Halep 1400 ROU2
41 Ksenia Pervak 1365 KAZ1
(37) 42 Petra Martic 1351 CRO1
43 Chanelle Scheepers 1350 RSA1
(38) 44 Polona Hercog 1320 SLO1
(39) SR 44 Agnes Szavay HUN1
(40) 45 Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez 1293 ESP3
(41) 46 Marina Erakovic 1287 NZL1
(42) 47 Venus Williams 1275 USA3
(43) SR 47 Timea Bacsinszky SUI1
(44) 48 Sofia Arvidsson 1260 SWE1
(45) 49 Shahar Peer 1255 ISR1
(46) 50 Sorana-Mihaela Cirstea 1211 ROU3
(47) 51 Kim Clijsters 1211 BEL2
(48) 52 Varvara Lepchenko 1209 USA4
53 Iveta Benesova 1190 CZE5
54 Ekaterina Makarova 1172 RUS7
(49) 55 Galina Voskoboeva 1168 KAZ2
(50) 56 Aleksandra Wozniak 1140 CAN1
(51) 57 Tamira Paszek 1117 AUT1
58 Sloane Stephens 1117 USA5
59 Vania King 1087 USA6
60 Barbora Zahlavova Strycova 1058 CZE6
(52) 61 Irina-Camelia Begu 1030 ROU4
(53) 62 Yaroslava Shvedova 1012 KAZ3
(54) 63 Urszula Radwanska 1001 POL2
(55) 64 Silvia Soler-Espinosa 985 ESP4
(56) 65 Su-Wei Hsieh 981 TPE1
-------------------CUT-OFF------------------------
66 Kateryna Bondarenko 975 UKR1
67 Lucie Hradecka 944 CZE7
68 Timea Babos 933 HUN2
69 Romina Oprandi 898 SUI2
70 Anna Tatishvili 870 GEO1
71 Arantxa Rus 862 NED1
72 Alexandra Panova 859 RUS8
73 Alize Cornet 857 FRA2
74 Kimiko Date-Krumm 851 JPN1
75 Jarmila Gajdosova 842 AUS2
76 Anne Keothavong 836 GBR1
77 Stephanie Foretz Gacon 832 FRA3
78 Pauline Parmentier 831 FRA4
79 Michaella Krajicek 815 NED2
80 Mathilde Johansson 813 FRA5

DOUBLES

Huber/Raymond 2 (USA)
Errani/Vinci 7 (ITA)
Kirilenko/Petrova 18 (RUS)
Kerber/Lisicki 24 (GER)
Peschke/Safarova 26 (CZE)
Vesnina/Makarova 28 (RUS)
Hradecka/Hlavackova 30 (CZE)
Cibulkova/Hantuchova 36 (SVK)
Shvedova/Voskoboeva 41 (KAZ)
Pennetta/Schiavone 42 (ITA)
Martinez/Llagostera 42 (ESP)
Goerges/Petkovic 43 (GER)
Rodionova/Gajdosova 52 (AUS)
Zheng/Peng 53 (CHN)
Williams/Williams 53 (USA)
Medina/Parra 53 (ESP)
Niculescu/Begu 57 (ROU)
Radwanska/Radwanska 66 (POL)
Dulko/Suarez 66 (ARG)
Dellacqua/Stosur 68 (AUS)
Srebotnik/Klepac 68 (SLO)
Rosolska/Jans-Ignacik 88 (POL)
Hsieh/Chuang 89 (TPE)
Halep/Cirstea 90 (ROU)

Haven't seen anything on the men's side nor the mixed doubles draws yet.

[omess]

Do we have any official confirmation of the direct entries into the Olympics or is just going to be announced on a country by country basis? And do we know when the ITF/IOC will announce the wildcards?

The official entry list will be released on June 28. The list provided on the post above is correct but there is question about the elgibilty of few players (Erakovic, Paszek lepchencko). The ITF is supposed to release the name of eligible players tomorrow


Men list http://tennis.it/olimpiadi-tennisti-qualificati/ (scroll down)

More info http://2012.itftennis.com/media/112391/112391.pdf http://2012.itftennis.com/olympics/o...act-sheet.aspx

[hurricanejeanne]

The official entry list will be released on June 28. The list provided on the post above is correct but there is question about the elgibilty of few players (Erakovic, Paszek lepchencko). The ITF is supposed to release the name of eligible players tomorrow


Men list http://tennis.it/olimpiadi-tennisti-qualificati/ (scroll down)

More info http://2012.itftennis.com/media/112391/112391.pdf http://2012.itftennis.com/olympics/o...act-sheet.aspx

Thanks Omess! I knew there were other players who were eligibility limbo (the ITF having already ruled on Pervak).

[skatingfan]

Thanks, will be interesting to see how all these eligibility issues will be resolved.

[Moose]

I don't fully understand the situation with the Indian men for doubles at the Olympics, but according to this article, both Bhupati and Paes have told the Indian Olympic selection committee that they do not want to play together - and Bopanna has told them he does not wish to partner with Paes either:

Mumbai: India’s medal hopes at Olympics have taken a beating when two stalwarts of Indian tennis-Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes- have decided not to play together at Olympics.

The Indian tennis team for the Olympics will be selected on Friday by selection committee members Jaidip Mukherjea, SP Misra, Rohit Rajpal, Zeeshan Ali and Sai Jayalakshmi. They will likely to pick the best doubles team to represent the country.

While it was widely believed till date that the two of India’s best doubles players would play one last time together and win a medal for the country. But the fact is that both have categorically told the All India Tennis Association (AITA) that they did not want to play together at the London games.

They, however, may have to play together if the tennis authorities of the country feel they should play together.

Another doubles player Rohan Bopanna also asked the AITA not to consider him to partner Leander Paes. In that case, Paes will have no world class doubles partner to compete in London Olympics.

Since Paes is the number one ranked doubles player of the country, the selectors will have a tough time selecting his doubles partner for the London Olympics.

http://zeenews.india.com/sports/lond...cs_743837.html

[JTContinental]

I thought they decided awhile ago that they weren't going to play in the Olympics...didn't they try a "reconciliation" period last year that only lasted a short time?

[Ribbons]

Arvidsson furious at Sweden:


‏

@Sofia_Arvidsson

Been fighting so hard to get this spot in the Olympics and now its been taken away from me, by my own country. #Tufftimes

https://twitter.com/Sofia_Arvidsson/...17444582899712

According to @SamR03A, Sweden Olympic Committee not sending her because she is not Top 8 potential. The spot in the draw will go to another country (Kateryna Bondarenko reportedly next in line).

[Moose]

Matt Cronin ‏@TennisReporters
Spanish Olympic doubles pairings: Nadal and Granollers, Ferrer and Lopez.

https://twitter.com/#!/TennisReporters

[Ribbons]

I don't fully understand the situation with the Indian men for doubles at the Olympics, but according to this article, both Bhupati and Paes have told the Indian Olympic selection committee that they do not want to play together - and Bopanna has told them he does not wish to partner with Paes either:

Paes had played with 86 different partners as of November 2009. I wonder what the count is up to now? (I see that he's paired with Kevin Anderson at Queen's.)

... oh, here we go. It looks Anderson is #90:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leander_Paes#Partnerships