HONG KONG, June 12, 2023 (IMG Press Release)
IMG and Hong Kong, China Tennis Association (“HKCTA”) today announced a partnership to bring an ATP Tour 250 event to Hong Kong from January 2024 through 2028, marking the tournament’s return to the city after a 20-year hiatus.
The tournament will take place during the opening week of the 2024 tennis season, from 31st December 2023 to 7th January 2024, at Victoria Park Tennis Stadium. With a total prize money of more than US$650,000 and a 28-player singles draw, the hard court tournament, which was previously located in Pune, India, will be the first ATP Tour tournament to be staged in Hong Kong since 2002.
Gavin Forbes, Executive Vice President & Managing Director, Tennis Events, IMG, said: “Following a successful five years in Pune, we are excited to bring an ATP Tour event back to Hong Kong after a more than 20-year hiatus. We would like to thank the tennis fans in Pune for their support these past years. Hong Kong is an established tennis market with a passionate fanbase, and it is a convenient, competitive stop for players on their way to the Australian Open. We look forward to working with HKCTA and using IMG’s unparalleled expertise in tennis to kick off the 2024 season with an exceptional experience in Hong Kong.”
Philip Mok, President, Hong Kong, China Tennis Association, added: “Our goal has been to bring an ATP Tour level event back to Hong Kong for several years, and we are thrilled to make it a reality. Our men’s exhibition event in December 2022 was so well received by both fans and players, and we believe it was the right time. An ATP 250 event will complement our existing WTA 250 and ensure local fans can experience the very best of both men’s and women’s professional tennis. This tournament is also key to our player development goals and our strategy to grow tennis and to utilise the tournament to further HKCTA’s Corporate Social Responsibility work in Hong Kong, bringing the sport to the widest possible audience. HKCTA is committed to promoting tennis in Hong Kong. Besides bringing another exciting international event to the city, the new tournament will serve as an additional platform for the association to further promote various aspects of the sport, including tennis-for-all, professional development, and community services.”
HKCTA is the event organiser of the Prudential Hong Kong Tennis Open, a WTA 250 tournament which has been held since 2014 and will stage its sixth edition in October this year. At its last staging in 2018, the event attracted a record attendance of close to 72,000 and was voted ‘WTA International Tournament of the Year.’
The tournament is part of IMG’s portfolio of leading tennis events around the world, including the joint ATP & WTA 1000 Madrid and Miami Open events, Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open WTA 500, Mubadala Citi DC Open WTA 500, and Chengdu Open ATP 250.
Hong Kong was home to a popular ATP tournament at Victoria Park Tennis Stadium from 1990-2002, which drew sell-out crowds annually and became a mainstay on the international tennis calendar. It attracted players such as Grand Slam champions Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, Boris Becker, and Michael Chang.
Further details of the new Hong Kong tournament will be announced at a later date.
