Due to corona virus: Wilhelmshöhe Open, Sparkasse Open and other German tournaments canceled
The ongoing coronavirus pandemic continues to determine our everyday lives and thus our business in the international tennis circus. After the cancellation of the Wimbledon Grand Slam tournament and the entire lawn season on the ATP and WTA tours, the crisis did not stop at the underpinning of professional tennis. At this level too, all tournaments were canceled until July 12th , as far as traditional events in Germany are concerned.
by Florian Heer
last edit: Apr 04, 2020, 12:03 pm
By Florian Heer
The “Stars of tomorrow” will not compete at the Wilhelmshöhe Open in Kassel this year. The most prestigious German men's tournament with $ 25,000 in prize money plus hospitality as part of the ITF World Tennis Tour and the "DTB Internationals presented by Wilson" series was traditionally to be held from July 13 to 19 at the KTC Bad Wilhelmshöhe 1896 will. Due to the current situation, nothing will come of it for the first time in 23 years. If you add the former Warsteiner Grand Prix series, which took place in the same place until 1997, it is the first tournament failure in 34 years.
"After many intensive discussions in the past few weeks with our sponsors, partners and service providers as well as with the German Tennis Association, we decided to cancel the Wilhelmshöhe Open 2020 and not to postpone it to a later date this year," said tournament director Dr. Eberhard Engelmann in a press release on Tuesday.
Early decision brings clarity
A clear announcement on the part of the organizer. The Wilhelmshöhe Open is not (yet) affected by the general tournament break on the ITF World Tennis Tour.
"With the decision we want to create planning clarity and not wait for any later official or association instructions", Engelmann confirms his measure. “Many of our sponsors and partners are currently dealing with other, more important things than our tournament. That and the uncertain further development make planning the Wilhelmshöhe Open at the high level of the past few years simply not possible. "
In the coming year the KTC Bad Wilhelmshöhe will celebrate its 125th anniversary in 1896. The sponsors have already signaled to support the tournament again. "We all hope that the situation will soon relax and that not only will we be able to do sports together again, but that the many North Hessian tennis fans will also take the supporters and sponsors of our tournament and other clubs or events into account when making their purchases or offering the services offered . Because only then can sport be held at a high level in the region, ”says Engelmann.
Sparkassen Open canceled
In addition to five German men's tournaments on the ITF World Tennis Tour in Meerbusch, Troisdorf, Kamen, Saarlouis and Marburg as well as three women's tournaments in Wiesbaden, Stuttgart-Vahingen and Versmold, the Sparkassen Open in Braunschweig is also a well-known event of the ATP Challenger Tour of the prescribed forced break of the associations to the victim.
The clay court tournament planned for the THC in Braunschweig from July 2nd to 11th, which was awarded a total of five times by the players as “World's Best ATP Challenger”, will not take place at this time. "After the tournament in Wimbledon was canceled, it was clear to us that holding the tournament in the same period was illusory and irresponsible," explains organizer Harald Tenzer.
Possibility of an indoor tournament?
“We naturally support this decision. The health of the players, the spectators and the employees always comes first, ”clarify Tenzer and tournament director Volker Jäcke.
"We will hold discussions with our sponsors about how our tournament will continue," says Tenzer, who would like to organize a tennis event this year. "There are already talks with the ATP to implement the tournament as an indoor tournament in Braunschweig at the beginning of December. More information will follow in the coming weeks. "