Generali Race to Kitzbühel: Carinthia is always worth a tennis trip
After the gigantic start of the Generali Race to Kitzbühel 2022 a week ago in the federal capital, the starting shot of Austria's most exclusive mass sports tennis event for the central region also sounded last weekend. Tournament director Andreas Antonitsch welcomed 52 participants to the Annenheim tennis center on the beautifully situated Ossiacher See in Carinthia and presented the first shimmering turquoise crystal trophies to the winners.
by Claus Lippert
last edit: May 04, 2022, 08:13 am
Start of the central region in the Tennis Center Annenheim
The St. Mark's lion, the well-known Generali trademark that stands for Kraft & Schutz, was omnipresent last weekend in the tennis club in Annenheim, which has just over 700 residents on the north shore of Lake Ossiacher See. The start of the Generali Race to Kitzbühel in the central region took place on the five beautifully situated sand courts, which after three tournament days with a rainy final day delivered the first winners and race leaders for the final showdown at the end of July at the ATP tournament in Kitzbühel.
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Carinthian tennis cracks win big, Ali Sharif provides an exotic touch
From a sporting point of view, the local tennis cracks won big last weekend and retained all the titles in Austria's southernmost province with one exception. The breakaway was provided by 14-year-old Elias Forcher, who in the 4-man competition took the title to Lienz in East Tyrol in a sovereign manner and only had to try the match tie-break to win in the final against Stefan Wogatei.
In the ITN 5 competition, a 16-year-old Carinthian from Feistritz shone with an impressive performance. Lucas Moser did not lose a set on his way to winning the title, sent his opponent off in three of the six sets played and thereby improved his ITN rating by almost 0.400 points.
The Libyan Ali Sharif, who traveled from Vienna, caused the most excitement at the last tennis weekend in Annenheim. The man with the most powerful hairstyle in the entire circuit provided the exotic touch in the beautiful Carinthian region. Even in the 7-man competition of the first Generali Race to Kitzbühel in the central region, there was no getting past the youngsters! In five matches to win his tournament, 16-year-old Thomas Günther only gave up one set in the semifinals against Ali Sharif and was happy about the first 10 points and the lead in the Race to Kitzbühel.
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Anna Schneider upholds the honor of women
At the age of 28, almost as a senior among the tournament winners, Richard Lanzer went through in the 8-person competition. In a Villach final derby, Lanzer prevailed in the 8-man competition against Anna Schneider from TC Warmbad-Villach 6:2, 6:3 and thus extended the Carinthian Festival at the Generali Race "dahoam".
Schneider, on the other hand, upheld the women's honor by entering the final, and with 8 points in the race, he can certainly hope for a successful qualification for the final tournament in the Gamsstadt.
"Unfortunately, we had a rainy final day, but the mood among the participants was great. As always, the doubles competition in match tiebreak mode with a handicap system was very popular. We're already looking forward to seeing you again next year ", tournament director Andi Antonitsch drew a first balance.
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By the way: The next stop in the Generali Race to Kitzbühel 2022 is Vienna again, where UTC La Ville will take on the role of host from May 13th to 15th.