[TORONTO, ON] December 10, 2024 – Tennis Canada today announced its recipients of the 2024 Tennis Canada Excellence Awards, which included multiple wins for Gabriela Dabrowski (Ottawa, ON) and Félix Auger-Aliassime (Montreal, QC), who both received the distinction of Player of the Year, as well as Women’s Doubles Player of the Year and Men’s Singles Player of the Year, respectively.
2024 TENNIS CANADA EXCELLENCE AWARDS
| Excellence Award | Recipient |
| Women’s Player of the Year | Gabriela Dabrowski |
| Men’s Player of the Year | Félix Auger-Aliassime |
| Women’s Singles Player of the Year | Leylah Annie Fernandez (Laval, QC) |
| Men’s Singles Player of the Year | Félix Auger-Aliassime |
| Women’s Doubles Player of the Year | Gabriela Dabrowski |
| Men’s Doubles Player of the Year | Liam Draxl (Newmarket, ON) |
| Women’s Most Improved Player | Marina Stakusic (Mississauga, ON) |
| Men’s Most Improved Player | Gabriel Diallo (Montreal, QC) |
| Junior Girls’ Player of the Year | Nadia Lagaev (Vaughan, ON) |
| Junior Boys’ Player of the Year | Nicolas Arsenault (Richmond Hill, ON) |
| Wheelchair Tennis Player of the Year | Rob Shaw (North Bay, ON) |
| Wheelchair Tennis Most Improved Player | Frédérique Bérubé Perron (Montreal, QC) |
“We would like to extend our heartfelt congratulations to the recipients of the 2024 Tennis Canada Excellence Awards,” said Gavin Ziv, Chief Executive Officer of Tennis Canada. “Over the past few years, Canada has solidified its place as a leading tennis nation, and this would not be possible without the achievements of Canadian players on the international stage. Gaby [Dabrowski] and Félix [AugerAliassime] medalling at the Olympics, Gaby becoming the first Canadian to win the WTA Finals, Frédérique [Bérubé Perron] qualifying for Canada’s first-ever junior wheelchair tennis Grand Slam, and the incredible accomplishments and progress of the likes of Leylah Annie [Fernandez], Marina [Stakusic], and Gabriel [Diallo] are just a few of the many examples I can name from this season. It’s been a pleasure to watch our athletes reach new milestones, and I can’t wait to see what 2025 has in store. Congratulations once again to this year’s award winners, the impact you have all had on the visibility and growth of Canadian tennis is truly remarkable, and we hope your ongoing success continues to put racquets in people’s hands.”
HISTORIC SEASONS FOR DABROWSKI AND AUGER-ALIASSIME
For the first time in her career, Dabrowski, the world No. 3 in doubles, takes home the Women’s Player of the Year award in what was a season to remember. Fresh from winning the US Open in 2023, her maiden Grand Slam women’s doubles title, the Ottawa native started her 2024 campaign with a semi-final appearance at the Australian Open alongside partner Erin Routliffe. Later in the year, the duo finished runners-up at Wimbledon and in two WTA 1000 tournaments – the Miami Open presented by Itaú and the National Bank Open presented by Rogers. They concluded their season by claiming the WTA Finals in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, marking the first time a Canadian had been crowned at the year-end competition.
The history-breaking season didn’t end there, as Dabrowski teamed up with Auger-Aliassime to clinch the bronze medal in mixed doubles at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, Canada’s first Olympic tennis medal in 24 years. Auger-Aliassime went on to finish fourth in men’s singles, the best result ever achieved by a Canadian in this event. On the ATP circuit, the Montrealer, who will finish his sixth season ranked inside the top 30 (No. 29), reached his first ATP 1000 final at the Mutua Madrid Open in April. It was the first time since 2020, when Milos Raonic advanced to the Cincinnati Open final, that a Canadian reached the championship match of a 1000-level event in men’s singles. This is Auger-Aliassime’s fourth Men’s Player of the Year award.
Dabrowski’s phenomenal season also earned her a 12th consecutive Women’s Doubles Player of the Year award, while Auger-Aliassime adds a fourth Men’s Singles Player of the Year award to his list of accolades.
FERNANDEZ, STAKUSIC, DIALLO, AND DRAXL MAKE WAVES IN 2024
Fernandez, Canada’s top-ranked singles player on the women’s side (No. 31), collects her fifth consecutive Women’s Singles Player of the Year award. The 22-year-old reached the sixth final of her career in June at the Rothesay International in Eastbourne, Great Britain. She also had two WTA 1000 quarter-final finishes at the Qatar TotalEnergies Open and Cincinnati Open. Representing Canada at the Olympic Games, Fernandez achieved her best Olympic result to date by reaching the third round in singles.
Enjoying a breakout season and receiving her second Women’s Most Improved Player of the Year award is world No. 126 Stakusic. After spending the majority of 2023 on the ITF World Tennis Tour, the 20-yearold opened her season qualifying for the main draw of the Cymbiotika San Diego Open, a WTA 500 event. In the summer, she qualified for her first Grand Slam main draw at Wimbledon, then went on to win a WTA 1000 first-round match at the National Bank Open. To cap off her season, Stakusic claimed her biggest career title at the WTA 125 Abierto Tampico.
Also receiving a second Most Improved Player of the Year award is world No. 87 Diallo. The 23-year-old Montrealer played the hero at the start of the season, winning both of his matches at the Davis Cup Qualifiers in his hometown to send Canada to the Group Stage of the Davis Cup Finals. In May, Diallo advanced to his first Grand Slam main draw at Roland-Garros, before repeating the feat at the US Open, where he turned heads by reaching the third round as a qualifier. His stellar season included a title at the Chicago Men’s Challenger and a second-place finish at the ATP 250 event in Almaty, Kazakhstan.
Newmarket’s Draxl, the Men’s Doubles Player of the Year, finished the season as the highest-ranked player on the men’s doubles circuit (No. 132), winning five ATP Challenger titles and one at the ITF M25 event in Edmonton, Alberta. He will head into the 2025 season on an eight-match winning streak in doubles, having won his last two tournaments in Puerto Vallarta and Manzanillo, Mexico. The 23-year-old also took home some hardware in singles in 2024, winning ITF M25 titles in Edmonton and SaintAugustin-de-Desmaures, Quebec, and an M15 title in Huamantla, Mexico.
In juniors, Lagaev and Arseneault – No. 61 and No. 84 in their respective junior rankings – had impressive seasons on both the junior and professional circuits. Lagaev, 16, won two J200 titles on the juniors’ side, and reached her first professional final at the ITF W15 event in Antalya, Turkey. She held a record of 5-2 when representing Canada at the junior Billie Jean King Cup. Arseneault, 17, also won two titles on the junior circuit at the J100 events in Quebec City, Quebec and Burlington, Ontario. On the men’s side, he played in the main draws of the Drummondville and Edmonton National Bank Challengers, as well as in the qualifying round of the National Bank Open.
WHEELCHAIR TENNIS AWARDS
Additionally, Shaw, the current world No. 7 in the quad division, received the Wheelchair Tennis Player of the Year award. The Ontario native enjoyed another successful year, qualifying for Grand Slam events at the Australian Open and Roland-Garros. He also reached the quarter-finals in quad singles at the 2024 Paralympic Games. Shaw finished the year with five doubles titles and two singles titles, including one at an ITF 1 series competition, which marked the biggest singles title of his career.
The Most Improved Wheelchair Tennis Player of the Year award went to Bérubé Perron, the 18-year-old Montrealer ranked 7th in juniors and 65th in the women’s rankings, an 89-place jump from her best ranking in 2023. This season, she won three ITF titles (one singles, two doubles), the women’s singles and juniors’ titles at the Birmingham National Wheelchair Tennis Championships, and qualified for the junior US Open, becoming the first Canadian wheelchair player to accomplish the feat.
About Tennis Canada
Founded in 1890, Tennis Canada is a non-profit, national sport association with a mission to lead the growth, development and promotion of tennis in Canada and a vision to be a world-leading tennis nation. We value teamwork, passion, integrity, innovation and excellence. Tennis Canada owns and operates the premier National Bank Open presented by Rogers WTA and ATP Tour events, it financially supports 15 other professional tournaments in Canada, as well as operating more than 60 events nationally across junior, wheelchair, university and Masters tennis categories. Tennis Canada is a proud member of the International Tennis Federation, the Canadian Olympic Committee and the Canadian Paralympic Committee, and serves to administer, sponsor and select the teams for Davis Cup, Billie Jean King Cup, the Olympic and Paralympic Games and all wheelchair, junior and masters tennis national teams. Tennis Canada invests its surplus into tennis development. For more information on Tennis Canada please visit our website at: www.tenniscanada.com and follow us on LinkedIn, X, Facebook and Instagram.
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