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ITFWorld Winter 2015

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Former ITF President Francesco Ricci Bitti was given the Award for Outstanding Lifetime Achievement by the Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC) at the ANOC Awards 2015 in October. The ceremony in Washington brought together the world's 206 National Olympic Committees and some of its best athletes in a celebration of sport and its power to unite nations and cultures. Ten athletes were honoured for their outstanding achievements and performances at each of the five Continental Games from the past 14 months, while IOC President Thomas Bach and long-jump great Bob Beamon were also recognised alongside Ricci Bitti. The Italian was also honoured with the 2015 United States Tennis Association's President's Award in New York in September. The award recognises an individual who has given extraordinary service to the sport of tennis in the public interest and previous recipients include Billie Jean King, Lindsay Davenport and the Bryan brothers. "Francesco Ricci Bitti has been a tremendous ambassador to the USTA and the sport of tennis for many years," said USTA President Katrina Adams. "The entire tennis community has benefitted from his incredible passion, dedication and commitment to the game." WINTER 2015 NEWS ROUND-UP UMAG HOSTS SUPER-SENIORS HONOURS FOR RICCI BITTI USA was the most successful nation at October's ITF Super-Seniors World Team Championships, winning three of the eight cups on offer in Umag, Croatia. The Americans captured three of the four women's events — the Kitty Godfree Cup (65 years), Queen's Cup (75 years) and Doris Hart Cup (80 years) — while the Althea Gibson Cup (70 years) was won by France. Germany was the most dominant nation in men's competition, winning the Bitsy Grant Cup (75 years) and Gardnar Mulloy Cup (80 years). Spain lifted the Britannia Cup (65 years) and Austria the Jack Crawford Cup (70 years). At the ITF Super-Seniors World Individual Championships the following week, players competed for 25 titles across five age categories, with France and USA leading the way in the singles honours. The French winners were Bruno Renoult (men's 65), Maria Jose Montagne (women's 75) and four-time Roland Garros doubles champion Gail Benedetti (women's 70). USA's winners were Richard Johnson (men's 70), Burnett Herrick (women's 80) and Clem Hopp (men's 85). The other singles titles in Umag went to Germany's Heidi Eisterlehner (women's 65) and Gerhard Coldewey (men's 80), Austria's Peter Pokorny (men's 75), and Canada's Rosemarie Asch (women's 85). More than 470 players from 37 countries took part in all, and full results for doubles and mixed can be found at www.itftennis.com/seniors. OBITUARY: HOWARD BRODY Howard Brody, one of the world's foremost tennis scientists, who pioneered much of the modern understanding of tennis equipment and its effects on how the game is played, died in August aged 83. Brody was an emeritus Professor of Physics at the University of Pennsylvania, where he spent his entire academic career, having begun his professional life as a particle physicist before a chance encounter in the 1970s led him to change focus to tennis. A keen amateur player, he coached the university tennis team, but is best known for his academic contribution to the sport. He authored two of the most important books on tennis science, Tennis Science for Tennis Players (1987) and, with Rod Cross and Crawford Lindsey, The Physics and Technology of Tennis (2002), as well as scores of scientific articles. Brody was a leading contributor at the series of ITF Tennis Science & Technology congresses, at which the most outstanding research paper was presented with an award named after him. Among his many tennis-related responsibilities, Professor Brody was a member of the ITF Technical Commission from 1997 to 2009, as well as the USTA Technical Committee. STENNING RECEIVES GOLDEN ACHIEVEMENT AWARD Mark Stenning, the former CEO of the International Tennis Hall of Fame (ITHF), was honoured with the ITF/ITHF Golden Achievement Award at a special ceremony at the US Open in September. Stenning was CEO of the ITHF for 14 years before stepping down in 2014. He held various leadership roles within the organisation over 35 years, and also served as a volunteer committee member for numerous industry organisations, fostering partnerships within the ITHF and the tennis world. Under Stenning's leadership, the ITHF grew from a modest museum and tennis facility into a multi-faceted organisation that serves tennis as the sport's officially-sanctioned worldwide Hall of Fame, and features an award-winning interactive museum and extensive research centre. Ricci Bitti with, left to right, Ato Boldan, ANOC President Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah and IOC President Thomas Bach Gail Benedetti (FRA) Stenning with, left to right, ITHF CEO Todd Martin, Francesco Ricci Bitti, USTA President Katrina Adams and Jane Brown Grimes, President Emerita of ITHF ITFWORLD WINTER 2015 39 www.itftennis.com

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