NEC Wheelchair Tennis Masters 2019 To Begin
26 years as the title sponsor of the year-end wheelchair tennis championship
Orlando, Florida - November 12, 2019 - NEC Corporation today announced its ongoing sponsorship of the NEC Wheelchair Tennis Masters, the International Tennis Federation's (ITF) year-end championship, where the world's top ranked wheelchair tennis players compete from November 19 to November 26, 2019 at the United States Tennis Association (USTA) National Campus at Lake Nona, Orlando, Florida, USA.
NEC celebrates 26 years as the title sponsor of the NEC Wheelchair Tennis Masters in 2019.
The prestigious tournament sees elite players compete in three divisions (men, women and quads) over eight days, and marks the end of the wheelchair tennis season following the men's, women's and quad finals on Tuesday, November 26.
The top eight men, eight women and six quad players have qualified to play at the 2019 NEC Wheelchair Tennis Masters based on the ITF Wheelchair Tennis Rankings of October 7.
The Wheelchair Tennis Masters was originally established in 1994 and has been sponsored by NEC since its inception.
A number of players who have benefitted from the ITFs development programme have gone on to compete in the NEC Wheelchair Tennis Masters.
David Haggerty, ITF President, said, "As the ITF's year-end wheelchair championship, the NEC Wheelchair Tennis Masters is arguably the most competitive tournament of the year as the top ranked players face their biggest rivals in round-robin competition to earn the right to go on and play for the titles. After a tremendously exciting tournament in 2018, we are very much looking forward to returning to the USTA National Campus once again for another memorable week of wheelchair tennis."
Takashi Niino, President and CEO of NEC Corporation said, "As sponsor of the NEC Masters for 26 years, we look forward to this exciting tournament once again, which in addition to thrilling championship tennis, also provides an excellent opportunity for the community to discover and engage in an inclusive sport."
Wheelchair tennis traces its beginnings to California, USA, in 1976 and has since spread across the globe. In 1992, the ITF created a tour for players, the NEC Wheelchair Tennis Tour, which consisted of 11 international tournaments. Wheelchair Tennis has also been a full medal sport at the Paralympic Games since 1992. It is still today one of the fastest growing wheelchair sports in the world, both in size and popularity, featuring currently over 160 events worldwide each year. In 1994, the ITF launched the NEC Wheelchair Tennis Masters as the supreme year-end challenge of the Tour.
Today, NEC is the title sponsor of the NEC Wheelchair Tennis Masters and an Official Partner of the UNIQLO Wheelchair Tennis Tour. NEC celebrates 28 years of partnership with the ITF this year.
The daily schedule for the 2019 NEC Wheelchair Tennis Masters is as follows:
Tuesday, November 19th to Tuesday 26th:
10.30am Play starts for round-robin matches (subject to change)
Monday, November 25th:
11.30am Play starts for Men's, Women's & Quad Semis (subject to change)
Tuesday, November 26th:
9.30am Play starts for Playoffs. Finals from 10.30am (subject to change)
About NEC Corporation
NEC Corporation is a leader in the integration of IT and network technologies that benefit businesses and people around the world. The NEC Group globally provides "Solutions for Society" that promote the safety, security efficiency and equality of society. Under the company's corporate message of "Orchestrating a brighter world," NEC aims to help solve a wide range of challenging issues and to create new social value for the changing world of tomorrow. For more information, visit NEC at nec.com.
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