Johannesburg 18 August 2011: During the period of August to November 2011, Kia Motors South Africa will provide amateur tennis players all around the country with an opportunity to experience a thrill like no other – to represent their country at the World Finals of the Kia Amateur Australian Open (KAAO) in Melbourne, Australia.
“As the popularity of the sport of tennis continues to grow, and opportunities for amateurs to compete on a global level is increasingly more difficult, Kia Motors is proud to provide these players the chance of a lifetime to play against other outstanding players from around the world in one of the premier venues in the world.” said Ray Levin, Chief Executive Officer of Kia Motors South Africa. He added: “Kevin Anderson is doing us proud on the ATP Tour and it is our hope that this tournament might provide amateurs the opportunity to showcase themselves in a Grand Slam arena.”
Three qualifying regional tournaments will produce four top teams as well as four wild card teams, who will face-off in November to determine a male and female champion. These two champions will represent South Africa at the Kia Amateur World Finals in Australia 26-29 January 2012 as well as attend the Men’s singles final at the Kia Australian Open in Melbourne.
At the Kia Amateur World Finals players will also have the experience of playing on either grass or clay courts at the Kooyong Tennis Complex and Hard courts at the Melbourne Park Tennis courts.
Qualifying events will be held at the following locations:
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Cape Town: Kelvin Grove Sports Club; 27-28 August 2011
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Durban: Westridge Park; 17-18 September 2011
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Johannesburg: Bryanston Sports Club; 22-23 October 2011
Qualifying events are open to amateur participants over the age of 18, who can register by contacting Tournament Director Holger Losch on 082 520 9699, [email protected] or by visiting www.kia.co.za. Players need to enter by Thursday 25 August at 18h00.
Any player who has earned points in an ATP and/or WTA event is not eligible to compete in the amateur tournament as well as previous national winners that have attended the KAAO.
The National Finals event will be held in Pretoria at Groenkloof Club, 12-13 November 2011.
In addition to the KAAO, from mid-September, Kia Motors SA will be launching the “Kia Lucky Drive to Australia” competition. This competition also affords consumers a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity of winning a trip to the Australian Open in 2012 by visiting their nearest Kia dealership and test driving any Kia.
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