Womens’ Indonesian Tennis Event Cancelled
Due to political unrest in Indonesia which has escalated as a result of the military actions taking place in Afghanistan, the Sanex WTA Tour has announced that it will cancel the upcoming tournament to take place in Surabaya.
In light of recent events taking place in certain areas of Indonesia, the Tour, in consultation with its security experts, has been monitoring the situation. Due to increased activities over the past week, the Tour has decided to cancel the event to ensure the safety of its players and staff.
Tournament Director for Surabaya, Kevin Livesey stated, ‘It is extremely disappointing to have to cancel this tournament, especially as we were able to present, with our title sponsor Wismilak International, such a successful event just a short time ago in the same region. We just completed the resurfacing of all the show courts here in Surabaya, and are ready to play. However, due to the recent developments, everybody understands it is the best decision.’
Originally scheduled for the week of October 29, this year’s event will not take place, but will remain on the Tour calendar for next year.
‘It was a painful decision because of the steps taken by the tournament staff and their sponsors to ensure a terrific event.’ said Tour CEO, Bart McGuire of the cancellation. ‘However, with the increased instability in the area, we decided, together with tournament management and our security experts, that the event had to be cancelled as a precautionary measure.’
The Sanex WTA Tour is the world’s premier professional sport for women with more than 1,000 players representing 76 nations competing for more than $50 million in prize money at 63 events in 33 countries worldwide in 2001. The Tour’s season concludes with the Sanex Championships at the Olympiahalle in Munich, Germany October 30-November 4, 2001.
Sanex WTA Tour events are viewed across the globe, reaching hundreds of millions of households, and are immensely popular in person, attracting more than four million spectators worldwide in 2000.
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