Lower Austria gets ATP Challenger tournament!
Welcome back in Lower Austria! From September 4 to 11, 2021, the Lower Austria OPEN powered by EVN will be held on the TC Tulln facility. The ATP Challenger is endowed with 101,798 euros and will be broadcast live on ORF for four days. At the same time, the Final Four of the HENN ÖTV-Bundesliga will be played at TC Tulln.
by Press release
last edit: Jun 14, 2021, 01:51 pm
Together with Sportland Niederösterreich, TC Tulln and Ronnie Leitgeb's Champ Events agency, the Austrian Tennis Association has succeeded in bringing an event at ATP level back to Lower Austria after 16 years with the NÖ OPEN powered by EVN. From September 4th to 11th, top-class tennis will be served on the TC Tulln facility. Top tennis has a long tradition in Lower Austria: up to 2005, the sport-loving federal state successfully hosted the ATP tournament in St. Pölten twelve times, the Daviscup team was also successful in St. Pölten in 2018 - 5-0 against Belarus in the sold-out VAZ arena.
It is remarkable how many top players come from Lower Austria, such as Dominic Thiem, Dennis Novak, Jurij Rodionov, Lucas Miedler as well as Gerald and Jürgen Melzer, who has been involved as sports director and managing director of sports in the ÖTV since this year and has campaigned heavily for this Challenger tournament . The NÖ OPEN in September, endowed with 101,798 euros, will offer a great platform for Austrian professionals to present themselves in front of a home audience. The winner receives 100 points for the ATP world rankings. According to the regulations, there can be three top 50 players at the start.
Worthy setting
The high status of this challenger is underlined by the TV presence. The quarter and semi-finals of the Lower Austrian OPEN can be seen live on ORF Sport plus, the final on September 11th will be broadcast on ORF 1. Speaking of television: ORF Sport plus will also show live the women's and men's finals of the HENN ÖTV-Bundesliga on September 12th, which will also take place on the stage of the TC Tulln as part of the NÖ OPEN. There is still one round to be played in the basic round. For women, it is completely open who will qualify as group winners for the Final Four. In the men's event, things are looking very good for defending champions Mauthausen and Irdning, where Dennis Novak, Lucas Miedler and the Melzer brothers are involved. In the previous year only a “normal” final could be played due to the corona, this year the team state championships from September 10th will again use the exciting three-day format with cross games.
The setting for the Lower Austria Open and the HENN Bundesliga Final Four could not be more worthy - the TC Tulln facility plays all of the pieces. Founded in 1903, the club has 10 outdoor clay courts and 4 indoor courts (granulate). Since 1954 the "Tournament for the Golden Rose of the City of Tulln" has been held as part of the horticultural fair at the end of August. This tournament has always been the largest in Tullnerfeld. In 2020 63 men (cat. 2) and 28 women (cat. 3) took part. The most famous starters include Sebastian Ofner, Lucas Miedler, Andreas Haider-Maurer and Anna Gröss (self-made player & double national champion 2020). In general, the TC Tulln sees itself as an "association for everyone", especially the junior division has been massively increased for several years - currently almost a quarter of the more than 400 members are young people.
Voices:
ÖTV President Magnus Brunner: “It was our goal to set up our own event at a high level in order to enhance the national tournament landscape. We have now succeeded in doing this with the ÖTV event NÖ OPEN. There is a great opportunity for our professionals to show and prove themselves in front of the local fans. The fact that the Final Four of our HENN Bundesliga will also be played as part of the Challenger at TC Tulln guarantees top tennis for a week in the state of Lower Austria, which is so enthusiastic about sports. "
ÖTV sports director Jürgen Melzer: “It has always been clear that we as ÖTV in Austria need an ATP challenger again, also co-organize this and give out wild cards. The less our players have to travel, the better - thanks to the close cooperation with Ronnie Leitgeb, this will definitely be a top-ranked tournament. Also because it takes place in the second week of the US Open and no ATP 250s are allowed to take place at this time. "
Sports Councilor Jochen Danninger: “As Sports Councilor, I am very pleased that a top-class ATP 100 tournament is taking place here in Lower Austria. After the entire sporting world was brought to its knees for a short time last year due to the coronavirus pandemic, every sporting event now gets us going again. A big thank you to the organizers, sponsors and helping hands who make this international tennis spectacle possible! Lower Austria offers the perfect backdrop for the ATP Challenger, because tennis enthusiasm is great in our state. An excellent infrastructure, 446 tennis clubs and role models such as Dominic Thiem ensure a huge upswing in tennis. "
Mayor Peter Eisenschenk: “We are always happy when organizers of major events choose our city as the venue and the advantages of the garden city of Tulln become even better known nationally and internationally - as in this case in the context of tennis coverage. I would like to thank the TC Tulln, among others, for their commitment and for leaving the tennis facility. "
TC Tulln chairman Josef Beinhardt: “We are very proud that our facility was selected as the tennis venue for both an international top tournament and a final four and is a great testimony for the entire club! I am particularly grateful for the chance that our members will continue to have access to the site and be able to practice their favorite tennis sport alongside the professionals. "
Organizer Ronnie Leitgeb: “After twelve successful years there was the last ATP tournament in St. Pölten in 2005. I am very happy that after 16 years, on the initiative of the state of Lower Austria and the ÖTV, it has been possible to bring an ATP tournament to Lower Austria again. Tulln will be a great platform for local professionals to present themselves in front of their own audience. Dennis Novak, Jurij Rodionov, Lucas Miedler and many more come from Lower Austria. "