More hours of grass court tennis will be shown on British television than ever before in the run-up to The Championships, Wimbledon after the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) signed an agreement with BT Sport to cover the Aegon Classic (Birmingham), the Aegon Championships (Queen’s) and the Aegon International (Eastbourne) in June.
BT Sport will show exclusive live coverage of the Aegon Classic (9-15 June), and share live coverage of the Aegon Championships (9-15 June) and the Aegon International (16-21 June) with the BBC.
As well as boosting television coverage of the sport in Britain, BT Sport will help to promote the LTA’s Great British Tennis Weekends, which see thousands of park sites and clubs up and down the country offer completely free opportunities to play the game. After a successful launch on the weekend of 17-18 May, three more Great British Tennis Weekends will be staged before (21-22 June), during (28-29 June) and after (19-20 July) Wimbledon.
On Sunday 15 June, BT Sport will also show two mixed doubles matches - at the Aegon Classic and the Aegon Championships - in aid of Rally For Bally, which will be held in memory of former British number one Elena Baltacha, who recently died from liver cancer.
Michael Downey, LTA Chief Executive, said: "Our world class major events inspire tennis fans around the world and I'm delighted that BT Sport will be helping us to take these tournaments to an even bigger audience, as well as promoting the Great British Tennis Weekends. This year, the Aegon Classic in Birmingham has been upgraded to a WTA Premier tournament, with more points, prize money and Top 20 ranked players, so it’s fitting and exciting that we have a new television partner in BT Sport that will devote more hours of live coverage to the event than ever before. By also sharing rights with the BBC for the Aegon Championships at The Queen’s Club, and the Aegon International in Eastbourne, BT Sport will tell the full story of our summer grass court tournaments in the lead-up to Wimbledon.”
Simon Green, Head of BT Sport, said: “We’re set for a glorious summer of grass court tennis on BT Sport. We will be bringing viewers the world’s best players at some of the world’s best grass court tournaments as they prepare for Wimbledon.
“We’re honoured to be able to bring the Rally for Bally to a wider audience, helping British Tennis to celebrate the life and memory of Elena Baltacha, as well as raising funds for extremely worthy causes.”
BT Sport's WTA coverage is hosted by Lynsey Hipgrave, former British number one Sam Smith, tennis legend Martina Navratilova and former British number one Anne Keothavong.
To donate to Rally For Bally, please go to www.justgiving.com/RallyForBally.
FYI. www.justgiving.com/rallyforbally
About the Aegon Classic
The Aegon Classic is a WTA Premier event on the women's tour and is held at the Edgbaston Priory Club in Birmingham, Great Britain. Former World No.1's Ana Ivanovic and Jelena Jankovic will lead six of the world's Top 20 in the line-up. The 2013 tournament was the 33rd anniversary of the event, and its roll of honour features Billie-Jean King, Martina Navratilova and Maria Sharapova. Last year, the Edgbaston Priory Club completed a £12 million redevelopment, which included a six court Indoor Tennis Centre, four championship grass courts and a new Centre Court.
About the Aegon Championships
The Aegon Championships is one of the longest-running tennis tournaments in the world, dating back more than a century and boasting a roll of honour which features Rod Laver, John McEnroe, Boris Becker, Pete Sampras and Andy Murray. Played at the prestigious Queen’s Club in London, the tournament’s grass courts are regarded as some of the best in the world. Andy Murray, Tomas Berdych, Lleyton Hewitt, Grigor Dimitrov and Jo Wilfried Tsonga have all signed up to play this year.
About the Aegon International
Devonshire Park in Eastbourne provides an idyllic setting for the Aegon International, a combined ATP and WTA event with a rich history stretching back several decades. 2014 is the 40th anniversary of the women’s event, and sees World No.3 Agnieszka Radwanska and 2011 Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova join the field, which has been won 11 times by the great Martina Navratilova.
About the Lawn Tennis Association
The Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) is the governing body for British Tennis. The LTA’s mission is to get more people playing tennis more often, and its role is to develop, promote and govern tennis in Britain.
For more information on the LTA and British tennis, visit: www.lta.org.uk