AO Press Release, January 15, 2020

The biggest names in world tennis, Serena Williams, Caroline Wozniacki, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Naomi Osaka, Petra Kvitova, Dominic Thiem, Coco Gauff and Australia’s Nick Kyrgios came together tonight to raise funds for bushfire relief.

AO Rally for Relief at Rod Laver Arena was broadcast around the world and helped bring the total funds raised by tennis so far for bushfire relief efforts across Australia to $4,826,014.

“It was incredible to be in Rod Laver Arena to see the global tennis community come together to support bushfire relief efforts,” Australian Open Tournament Director Craig Tiley. 

“I don’t think there was a dry-eye in the house when Mark Seymour opened the night with “Throw your arms around me” as images from around Australia took over the screens.

“While the cheers for the biggest players in our sport were loud, the moment of the night was the standing ovation by the 15,000-strong crowd for the 30 volunteer firefighters who were special guests at the event. 

“We hope to raise millions of dollars throughout the summer of tennis and tonight is just the start. My wish is for Australian Open 2020 to be remembered as much for the good we’ve done for these fire ravaged communities as for the spectacular tennis.” 

World No.1 Rafa Nadal announced that he and Roger Federer were teaming up to pledge an additional $250,000 to the Bushfire Relief effort, “Talking with Roger a couple of hours ago we decided to give $250,000 Australian dollars to the bushfire relief together,” Nadal said.

“Hopefully that keeps inspiring the people to support this terrible disaster that were going through and it helps recover all the things that we need,” Nadal continued. 

.@RafaelNadal & @rogerfederer pledge to donate $250,000 together for the Australian bushfire relief efforts 👏#RallyForReliefpic.twitter.com/anQZMucOPu

— ATP Tour (@atptour) January 15, 2020

“I’m always happy to help, always happy to give my time or my money, it was an absolute pleasure to be here tonight playing with all the other legends of the game… This is the way to do it, we all come together for other people and I think that’s a true inspiration for many other countries as well,” 20-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer said. 

An enthusiastic crowd of 14,108 fans attended AO Rally for Relief, with 100% of ticket sales going to support the Victorian Bushfire Relief.

Additional information about the Australian Open and tennis community fundraising efforts can be found here: ausopen.com/aces.

ACES FOR BUSHFIRE RELIEF INITIATIVES

·         Bidding for Bushfire Relief – Tennis Auction here

·         #Aces4BushfireRelief – More than 4200 aces served so far, $100 donation for every ace served at: Australian Open, ATP Cup, Brisbane International, Adelaide International, Hobart International, Apis Canberra (Bendigo) International

·         Player pledges: ATP and WTA players have pledged their support to the Aces for Bushfire relief through various donations

·         Community Tennis Relief: Tennis Australia has granted $1 million to help communities repair and rebuild tennis facilities damaged or lost in the bushfires.

·         AO Music for Relief: Proceeds from the AO Live Stage concert with Jessica Mauboy on Sunday 19 January will be donated to bushfire relief. Additional artists will be announced in the coming days

·         Open Court Sessions for Bushfire Relief: More than 1,000 tennis clubs across the country will be encouraged to support the relief efforts as part of the launch of Tennis Australia’s newest adult social play participation program, Open Court Sessions

·         Official Charity T-Shirt: Country Road, the Official Fashion Partner of the Australian Open, has created a limited-edition T-shirt, with 100 per cent of sales going directly to the Australian Red Cross Disaster Relief and Recovery fund (exclusive of GST). T-Shirts can be purchased from the AO Shop on site

·         Bushfire Emergency Wildlife Fund: Zoos Victoria will set up under Court 3 at the Australian Open to sell Australian animal soft toys. All profits and donations will go directly to the Bushfire Emergency Wildlife Fund

·         AO Rally for Relief: The biggest names in world tennis, Serena Williams, Caroline Wozniacki, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Naomi Osaka, Petra Kvitova, Dominic Thiem, Coco Gauff and Australia’s Nick Kyrgios came together tonight to raise funds for bushfire relief at a live event on Rod Laver Arena.