Porsche supports new WTA tournaments in Berlin and Bad Homburg with successful premiere
The WTA events, which were held for the first time in Berlin and Bad Homburg, passed their fire roars thanks to the support of Porsche.
by Press release
last edit: Jun 29, 2021, 10:05 am
The new women's tennis tournaments bett1open in Berlin and Bad Homburg Open celebrated a successful premiere. As a real asset to the global WTA Tour, they further enhance Germany's tennis location together with the traditional Porsche Tennis Grand Prix. The official automobile partner and sponsor supported Porsche as part of its extended commitment to women's tennis with an exclusive Porsche shuttle service.
Therefore, Alexander Pollich, CEO of Porsche Deutschland GmbH, was delighted with the success of the two events: “It was nice to see that the new tournaments were very well received by both the players and tennis fans. We are pleased that, together with the Porsche Centers in Berlin and Bad Homburg, we were able to contribute to the success of the tournaments and thus also to further strengthening Germany as a tennis location. "
Numerous top players used the new grass events in Germany to prepare for the third Grand Slam tournament of the year at Wimbledon. The top seeded player in Berlin was Aryna Sabalenka (Belarus), finalist of the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix 2021. In Bad Homburg, Petra Kvitova (Czech Republic) topped the seeding list, two-time Wimbledon winner and winner of the 2019 Porsche Tennis Grand Prix. Porsche brand ambassador Angelique Kerber, Wimbledon Champion 2018, played both tournaments, as did Andrea Petkovic from Porsche Team Germany. With Jule Niemeier (Porsche Talent Team) in Berlin and Mara Guth (Porsche Junior Team) in Bad Homburg, two youngsters supported by DTB and Porsche also made it into the main field.
Victories for Angelique Kerber and Liudmila Samsonova
The bett1open in Berlin (June 14-20) - like the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart, a tournament of the WTA 500 category - ended in front of 1,000 enthusiastic spectators on the final day with a sensational success by Liudmila Samsonova: The Russian qualifier won the final against the Swiss top 15 player Belinda Bencic. At the WTA 250 tournament Bad Homburg Open (June 20-26), where 600 tennis fans were allowed to take part every day and created an atmospheric atmosphere, Angelique Kerber won 6: 3 and 6: 2 in the final against Katerina Siniakova from the Czech Republic won their 13th WTA title - the first since Wimbledon 2018.
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It was a very special success for the 33-year-old from Kiel, after all, the Bad Homburg Open was a premiere for her in two respects: The three-time Grand Slam winner not only competed as a player, but was also a co-organizer for the first time in her career . She experienced this dual role as a completely new and interesting experience. “It was a very exciting journey for me right from the start,” says Kerber. “I got even more interesting insights into the organizational work and was often amazed at what it takes to make things go well from A to Z. It is a great challenge not only to be involved as a player, but also to be jointly responsible for the success of the tournament. "
Porsche Shuttle Service with a total of around 2,600 trips
The players also appreciated the exclusive and electrically powered Porsche Shuttle Service, which they know from the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart, also at the new WTA tournaments. Up to 25 Porsche Taycan, Cayenne and Panamera E-Hybrids were in use in Berlin, making around 1,600 trips. In Bad Homburg there were up to twelve vehicles that were used for around 1,000 journeys. Kerber was not surprised that this service was so well received by her colleagues: "The players are always happy when they are driven back and forth in such great cars."
VIP guests of the tournament were also able to enjoy the electric fleet. And the opportunity to test the Porsche Taycan was very popular with the spectators in Berlin.
Four players from Porsche Team Germany at Wimbledon
Four players from Porsche Team Germany will be playing at the Grand Slam tournament in Wimbledon (June 28 to July 11): In addition to Angelique Kerber, Laura Siegemund, Andrea Petkovic and Mona Barthel will also be at the start. In their first-round matches, Angelique Kerber will meet Nina Stojanovic (Serbia), Laura Siegemund against Jekaterina Alexandrova (Russia), Andrea Petkovic against Jasmine Paolini (Italy) and Mona Barthel against Zhu Lin (China). In the junior women competition, Mara Guth, Julia Middendorf and Nicole Rivkin from the Porsche Junior Team as well as Nastasja Schunk from the Porsche Talent Team get the opportunity, well deserved with strong performances, to smell Grand Slam air and compete with the best young female players in the world. Laura Isabel Putz and Noma Noha Akugue from the Porsche Junior Team can still hope to move up into the strong field.
Porsche in tennis
Porsche has been sponsoring the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix since 1978, and has also been the organizer since 2002. The tournament in the Stuttgart Porsche Arena was once again chosen as the most popular in its category in the world at the last female player poll. As part of its global partnership with the Women's Tennis Association (WTA), Porsche is among other things title partner of the “Porsche Race to Shenzhen”, the official qualification ranking for the Shiseido WTA Finals. The Stuttgart sports car manufacturer is also the exclusive automobile partner of the WTA and the WTA Finals and this year sponsor of the WTA tournaments in Lyon and St. Petersburg as well as Berlin and Bad Homburg. As a premium partner of the German Tennis Association (DTB), the company supports the Porsche Team Germany in the Billie Jean King Cup (formerly Fed Cup) and is involved in promoting young talent with the Porsche Talent Team and the Porsche Junior Team. The brand ambassadors Angelique Kerber, Julia Görges and Maria Sharapova give Porsche a face in tennis.