ROGERS CUP

August 21, 2005

Stacey Allaster

STACEY ALLASTER: Well, what a fantastic way to finish. It was incredibly special to have our first championship match played on this beautiful Rexall Centre with Martina Navratilova and her partner becoming our 2005 Rogers Cup presented by American Express doubles champions. For me, it was magical in the sense that when we left the old stadium in 2003, she played the final match. At that time we all marveled and were in awe of her skill and her dedication to the sport. She said good-bye to us, which was a shame because it would have been great to have her. Lo and behold, doesn't she just come back and play on this court, but she plays the first championship match on this new stadium. It's a bit surreal to think that it happened, then she went on to win the tournament. I think it was a great way to begin Championship Sunday. Then it was capped off with two great champions, with Kim and Justine, and now with Kim winning. It's been obviously an interesting week for everyone involved. But if someone said to me at the beginning of the week, "You're going to have Anastasia Myskina, you're going to have Kim Clijsters, you're going to have Justine Henin, and you're going to have Amélie Mauresmo in your semis," I'd be a really happy tournament director starting on Monday. I think we got a fantastic ending for all of us. I'm just thrilled to be sitting here. I couldn't say enough about what all the players have done for Canadian tennis this week. I'll turn it over to you, if anyone has any questions.

STACEY ALLASTER: Here on my trusty Blackberry, we have the attendance figures, 136,789.

STACEY ALLASTER: Today? Well, we were closer to -- I don't have today's. We had 700 seats remaining in the lower bowl, and we had 1,000 seats remaining in the upper deck. It was a slower-than-normal walk-up. We're probably closer to about 10,000 today.

STACEY ALLASTER: Our goal, and I felt going into the tournament that we would have achieved 155 to 160 thousand. No doubt, we talked about this through the week, that when we lost players like Maria and Serena, those that drive walk-up as it relates to casual fans, fans who aren't necessarily tennis fans, those are the customers that didn't join us. Sure, we would have liked to have achieved that goal. We still, to reach 136, for a single-week women's event on the so any Ericsson WTA Tour is unbelievable. Canada holds the world record. Our colleagues in Montreal hold the world record, then we're two. These are among the very, very best fans who come out and support women's tennis. On behalf of Tennis Canada, I'd like to thank all of you for everything you do for us. Obviously, if we didn't have our friends at the media to help us promote tennis and the Rogers Cup presented by American Express, we wouldn't have a tournament. So to all of you, for the long hours that you put in, day in, day out, thank you for sharing in what we believe. Hopefully all of us one day in Canada can dream of having a Canadian champion and crowning that champion on court. Thank you. What a great week.