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To: International Media
From: Roger J. Sherratt,
Press Officer, BSRA
Subject:
Bermuda
Open 2004 presented by Logic & HP
PRESS
RELEASE – FOR RELEASE DECEMBER
10, 2003
Bermuda will provide an
idyllic setting for world class squash next Spring (15th – 20th
March) when the Bermuda Squash Racquets Association hosts The Bermuda Open
2004 presented by Logic and HP. The event will attract a star-studded
line-up of the World’s top professional players and has been fully
sanctioned by the Professional Squash Association (PSA) as a “Five-Star
Tournament”.
Even at this early stage
the World’s leading players have shown great interest in participating in
the 16 man tournament, with 11 places going to the World’s best, one place
being reserved as a wild card entry, and an additional 4 places chosen from
the 16 man qualifying tournament.
The Tournament will be
televised with a potential viewing audience of 375 million through Fox
Sports and other sports networks.
Bermuda has been hosting
international squash tournaments since 1969 and claims to have hosted the
first “softball” tournament ever held on the western side of the Atlantic,
but the 2004 Bermuda Open is far more ambitious than any of the Island’s
previous ventures. Although the qualifying matches will be held at the
BSRA’s Devonshire courts, the main tournament will take place in the tiny
capital city of Hamilton on a specially imported all glass court, together
with theatre-style seating.
In addition to the PSA 5
Star tournament a host of other activities will be available to the
international visitor. The professional men’s event will run concurrently
with an amateur tournament, the Bermuda Open Graded Championships. This
tournament will provide players of all standards from all over the world the
opportunity to compete in the event. Prior to the squash competition,
coaching clinics by world champion coaches Mike Way and Shaun Moxham will be
available for players wanting to improve their game. The physical activities
will be accompanied by Bermuda’s famous hospitality with many social
activities on offer throughout the event
This is a major event for
the small Island of Bermuda, with a total population of just under 65,000,
located 700 miles off the eastern coast of the U.S. Bermuda is one of the
World’s premier tourist destinations, with its magnificent pink beaches,
pastel coloured houses and snow white roofs (despite snow being unheard of
on this Island paradise!), numerous golf courses, and its long history as a
British colony. Hamilton is a thriving centre for International business,
and believe it or not, well dressed businessmen do walk the streets wearing
Bermuda shorts.
2003 has been a banner year
for squash in Bermuda, with the Bermuda Men’s Team sweeping all before them
in the recent Caribbean Squash Championships. Their Team were unbeaten in
team competition, and both of the finalists in the Men’s singles were from
Bermuda.
An event of this magnitude
would be impossible without generous local and international sponsorship,
and Stephen Young, President of the BSRA says, “We have been very fortunate
indeed to have secured sufficient sponsorship to guarantee the event thanks
to the support of presenting sponsors Logic and Hewlett Packard, Endurance
as host sponsor and additional sponsorship from our primary sponsors,
Bermuda Department of Tourism and the Fairmont Hamilton Princess.
We are looking forward to
an exciting tournament and have plans to expose our own youngsters and our
local community to squash at the highest level.
Participants in the Bermuda
Open can expect a warm and enthusiastic welcome from the Bermuda public.
The event is scheduled from 15th – 20th March. For
more information contact Tournament Director, Ross Triffitt at 441-292-6881,
or visit the website at
www.bermudaopen.com.
Roger J. Sherratt
Press Officer
BSRA
Quote – Gawain Briars
(Chief Executive, PSA)
"PSA is delighted to
welcome to our world tour the inaugural Bermudan Open, from the 15th to the
20th March 2004.
The planning for this
new five star event has been lengthy and thorough, and I am sure the
promoters Ross Triffitt and his team will have covered all bases to
guarantee the success of the tournament.
The international draw of
Bermuda as a venue speaks for itself, and it is my view that the world's top
players will rush to enter and play.
With a new all glass court
being erected in a charismatic setting on the island, the Bermuda Open will
undoubtedly establish itself as one of the PSA's marquee events that will
receive the full benefit of our international television broadcast
distribution. It shall be a pleasure to distribute footage of the action and
power of the players together with the glamour and prestige of the island to
millions of PSA viewers worldwide.
But the real winners will
be the live audiences that watch the best athletes in the world perform to
their maximum for the honour of winning this coveted new title.
PSA salutes the hard work
that has gone into making this event a reality, and I trust the fans and
media will thoroughly enjoy the week's sporting entertainment.”
Quote
– Robert Edwardes (PSA World Tour Technical Director)
"As the
PSA World Tour Technical Director, I see new tournaments as the life blood
of the professional game. But when a new 5 star event comes on to our
Calendar that is set on the magnificent Island of Bermuda then the pulse
really quickens. This new tournament will have the lot - the best players on
the planet - the glass court - a breathtaking venue and a "Showtime"
presentation. Our television coverage will take the action and the beauty of
Bermuda into the homes of more than 375 million. This venue will now rank
with the most exciting sites in the world. The trend of putting on show
tournaments in such places as Giza - alongside the Pyramids, The Grand
Central Station in New York, the wonderful State of Qatar, Hurghada - an
Island setting in the Red Sea and even the worlds largest shopping mall in
Edmonton etc. will now be joined with another jewel - The Bermuda Open.
What a setting for the top gladiators of the game to show us Pro-Squash at
it's ultimate best." |