Montreal, May 8, 2020 — Due to the exceptional situation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, it is with great regret that Tennis Canada announced on Friday the cancellation of all of its national and international tournaments scheduled up until August 31, in addition to the Birmingham Classic, an international wheelchair event which was set to take place from September 10 to 13, and with the exception of the Rogers Cup presented by National Bank in Toronto.

Tennis Canada is continuing to closely monitor the coronavirus (COVD-19) situation and is in contact with Public Health Canada and the various national and international tennis organizations. Given the evolution of the crisis in Canada, the recommendations from Public Health and the restrictions in place limiting travel between regions and provinces, Tennis Canada believes that it must cancel these events to ensure the health and safety of everyone involved.

“It is with deep regret and sadness that we are announcing this news. Our thoughts go out to the participants, coaches, clubs, organizers, host volunteers, athletes and families that are impacted by this decision. Many of them were training tirelessly to prepare and compete in these events. That said, the safety and wellbeing of the players, their teams, the fans and our tournament staff are our top priority at this time, and this is what guides our decisions,” stated Hatem Mcdadi, Senior Vice-President of Tennis Development at Tennis Canada. “We encourage all of our partners and tennis community to be patient, stay motivated and inspired and have faith that we will come back stronger when the time is right and the conditions for travel and competition pose no health risk to all involved. We will monitor the situation closely with health officials and government authorities as we look to resume a return to competition as soon as possible.”

“Since the beginning of this crisis, over two months ago, we have had to cancel around twenty tournaments of all categories, we have had to postpone the Rogers Cup presented by National Bank in Montreal, which represents a great financial loss for the development of tennis in Canada, and we have had to restructure our organization which forced us to say goodbye to several important members of our team. It goes without saying that this is a very difficult time for the entire tennis industry. However, we are committed to making decisions that favour a safe sporting environment,” said Michael Downey, President and CEO at Tennis Canada. “To revive our sport across the country, we believe that we must first concentrate our efforts on a gradual return and outline measures for playing tennis that adhere to the recommendations from Public Health for social distancing and eventually, when conditions permit, encourage the holding of local and provincial tournaments.”

Tennis Canada will continue to communicate changes to all stakeholders.

List of cancelled tournaments (in addition to the tournaments cancelled as of March 12 and April 1):

Junior Nationals

August 13-20 – U18 Outdoor Rogers Junior Nationals – Ontario Racquet Club, Mississauga, ON

August 21-27 – U12 Outdoor Rogers Junior Nationals – Carrefour Multisports, Laval, QC

August 22-27 – U16 Outdoor Rogers Junior Nationals – Gatineau, QC

August 29-September 4 – U14 Outdoor Rogers Junior Nationals – Carrefour Multisports, Laval, QC

Senior Nationals

August 23-29 – Steve Stevens Senior Nationals (all categories) – Vancouver Lawn Tennis Club, Jericho Tennis Club, Richmond Country Club, Arbutus Club and Bear
Mountain Resort, BC

University Tournaments

August 15-16 – Canadian University Tennis Championships (women) – IGA Stadium, Montreal, QC

August 15-16 – Canadian University Tennis Championships (men) – Aviva Centre, Toronto, ON

International Senior and Wheelchair Tournaments

July 15-19 – Ville de Québec presented by Alain Gravel’s team Re/Max 1st choice ITF senior event, St-Charles Grenier, l’Ancienne-Lorette, Quebec, QC

July 16-19 – Vancouver International ITF Futures Wheelchair event – Kits Beach Courts, Vancouver, BC

July 22-24 – Kamloops Legacy Games ITF Futures Wheelchair event – Kamloops, BC

July 30-August 3 – Toronto Grade A ITF Championships senior event – Granite & Bayview Golf and Country Club, Toronto, ON

September 10-13 – Birmingham Wheelchair Classic ITF Grade 2 event – Aviva Centre, Toronto, ON

About Junior Nationals
Each summer, 300 athletes between the ages of 12 and 18 participate in the Outdoor Junior Nationals. Since its creation in 1953, this is the first time that these events have been cancelled.

About Steve Stevens Senior Nationals
The Steve Stevens Senior Nationals are the most important competition for seniors players in Canada. 550 players between the ages of 35 and 85 come from all across Canada to compete.

About Tennis Canada
Founded in 1890, Tennis Canada is a non-profit, national sport association with a mission to lead the growth of tennis in Canada and a vision to become a world-leading tennis nation. We value teamwork, passion, integrity, innovation and excellence. Tennis Canada owns and operates the premier Rogers Cup presented by National Bank WTA and ATP Tour events, four professional ATP and ITF sanctioned events and financially supports four other professional tournaments in Canada. Tennis Canada operates junior national training centres/programs in Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver and Calgary. 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, Fed Cup, the Olympic and Paralympic Games and all wheelchair, junior and senior national teams. Tennis Canada invests its surplus into tennis development. For more information on Tennis Canada please visit our Web site at: www.tenniscanada.com and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

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Media contacts

Valérie Tétreault, Director, Communications
           vtetreault@tenniscanada.com or 514-273-1515, ext. 6259
          
Victoria Jaklin, Coordinator, Communications
           vjaklin@tenniscanada.com or 514-273-1515, ext. 6291

Oliver Wheeler, Coordinator, Communications
           owheeler@tenniscanada.com or 416-665-9777, ext. 4545