MEMBERSHIP APPLICATIONS
A reminder to everyone that new applications for ITWA membership should be submitted by the end of September. Please send applications initially to Marco Keller Francisco Moreira (fmoreira@attglobal.net). The board will also be reviewing the membership of anyone who might no longer meet ITWA criteria.
PARIS MASTERS
Sylvie de Ligt at the French Tennis Federation has sent the following information for ITWA members about the BNP Paribas Masters 2007 in Paris from October 28 to November 4.
Sunday start : For the first time, the tournament will begin on SUNDAY October 28, 2007 with 2 singles matches of the final draw.
Credential forms: For your information, they have been sent on September 12, to journalists accredited last year. It is also available on our BNPPM website to the following address: www.fft.fr/bnpparibasmasters/default_en.asp.
As it is explained, each journalist can print it, then fill it out and send it back to FFT before OCTOBER 5.
Press room : installations are the same as last year.
Please note that a free WIFI will be available in the press room. A login/password will be delivered at the welcome desk.
More information will be available on our website (schedule, press release…)
The ITWA
The International Tennis Writers Association was formed four years ago to represent the select group of journalists who travel the globe, week-in and week-out, covering tennis for the written and broadcast media. ITWA includes members from 17 countries and the coverage they provide brings tennis to millions worldwide. ITWA is committed to working with the sport's governing bodies, tournaments, agents and players both to improve the working conditions of tennis journalists and to gain recognition for the media's vital role in the promotion of the sport.
FEDERER DOUBLES UP TO WIN
TENNIS WRITERS AWARD
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| Roger Federer poses with ITWA Board Member Chris Bowers. |
The International Tennis Writers Association
(ITWA) has voted Roger Federer its Player of the Year for 2005 and
awarded him its annual Ambassador for Tennis Award. It's the second
year in succession that Federer has scooped both of the organisations
annual accolades.
The Swiss won Wimbledon and the US Open and was runner-up at the Masters Cup
during 2005, which saw him end the season as World No.1 for the second year running.
ITWA's 104 members (from 17 countries) voted for him as their Player of the Year
ahead of Roland Garros champion Rafael Nadal.
"Roger's 11 titles, including two Grand Slams, four Tennis Masters Series
crowns and his incredible 81-4 match record clearly put him over the top," said
ITWA co-president Matthew Cronin.
"With his remarkable variety, heady play and dogged competitiveness,
Federer continues to push the sport to new heights."
Yet tennis journalists and broadcasters also recognized Federer's professionalism
and hard work with the media and his role in helping the sport reach out to new
and existing fans. He beat the likes of Americans Andre Agassi and James Blake
to pick up his second ITWA Ambassador for Tennis Award.
"The fans see you out on court and maybe they think 'He's a great player',
but I don't know if they realize how much we are doing off the court in trying
to improve the game and the image of the sport, which from my point of view are
very, very important,"
said Federer.
"Roger embodies professional excellence on and off the court,"
said Eleanor Preston, Co-President of ITWA. "His friendliness
towards the media and his willing and open attitude to promoting
tennis is an example to his peers in how to bring the sport to
a wider audience. That, even more than his trophies and titles,
could be Federer's most important gift to tennis. We are very,
very lucky to have him."
ITWA voted Kim Clijsters its female Player of the Year and, like Federer, the
Belgian also made it a clean sweep by picking up the ITWA Ambassador for Tennis
Award.
ITWA was formed five years ago to represent the select group of journalists who
travel the globe, week-in and week-out, covering tennis for the written and broadcast
media. ITWA includes members from 17 countries and the coverage they provide
brings tennis to millions worldwide. ITWA is committed to working with the sport's
governing bodies, tournaments, agents and players both to improve the working
conditions of tennis journalists and to gain recognition for the media's vital
role in the promotion of the sport.
Clijsters Captures Both ITWA's year-end awards
 |
| Kim Clijsters is photographed with former ITWA Co-President Matthew Cronin. |
The International Tennis Writers Association
(ITWA) in their 2005 awards has doubly recognized Kim Clijsters'
remarkable achievements on court and her hard work in promoting
the sport off the court. For the first time in the organisation's
history, one woman picked up both awards in the same year.
The tennis writers voted Clijsters the hands-down Player of the Year and also
honored her with ITWA's Ambassador for Tennis award, which salutes players
who go out of their way to advance the sport at a global level.
"Working with the media is the best way of reaching out to the fans so that they
get to know you and understand you better," said Clijsters.
"It's a really important part of the job for me because the media
really helps tennis."
While she ended the year ranked No. 2, the 22-year-old Belgian had a remarkable
season, winning a tour-high nine titles, including her first Grand Slam
at the US Open and three other Tier One titles at Indian Wells, Miami and
Toronto. All this came about despite the fact that Clijsters missed the vast majority
of the 2004 season due to wrist surgery and was ranked 134 in the world when
she returned to the tour in Antwerp in February 2005.
"Kim was not only the comeback player of the year, but showed herself to
be the most consistent player amongst the elites," said Matthew Cronin, co-President
of ITWA. "She really came of age this year as a player both mentally and technically.
She's improved her serve and forehand a ton, and also is a fine strategist and
manages her matches well. If she stays healthy, she'll be challenging for number
one during the entire 2006 season."
Other players who received Player of the Year votes included France's Mary Pierce,
American Lindsay Davenport, Italy's Francesca Schiavone and Russia's Maria
Sharapova.
In 2004, Sharapova was named ITWA's Player of the Year.
"Being an outstanding player is achievement enough but Kim seems just as committed
to working with the media and reaching out to fans as she does to winning titles,
and that makes her an extraordinary asset to the game," said Cronin's ITWA co-President
Eleanor Preston. "Her friendliness and professionalism towards the media ensures
that her naturally engaging and bubbly personality comes across to tennis enthusiasts
and casual fans alike."
Other players receiving Ambassador of the Year votes were Lindsay Davenport,
Sharapova, Mary Pierce, Amelie Mauresmo, Elena Dementieva, Ana Ivanovic, Maggie
Maleeva, Sania Mirza and Paola Suarez.
The International Tennis Writers Association was formed five years ago to
represent the select group of journalists who travel the globe, week-in and week-out,
covering tennis for the written and broadcast media. ITWA includes members from
17 countries and the coverage they provide brings tennis to millions worldwide.
ITWA is committed to working with the sport's governing bodies, tournaments,
agents and players both to improve the working conditions of tennis journalists and
to gain recognition for the media's vital role in the promotion of the sport.
MAKING LIFE BETTER WITH AGENTS
Here's a quick update on an ITWA initiative we began last fall. At our US Open meeting we agreed to try and improve our working relationships with agents.
Throughout the fall and early winter, I gathered lots of good input from ITWA members and several agents to identify many issues – ranging from tactical matters like returning phone calls, to broader matters related to how our ideas are represented to players, gaining interview access and more.
Letters detailing all of these issues were sent to dozens of agents. (Please let me know if you'd like to see what was sent). And here's the honest truth: the response from agents has been underwhelming.
I have, though, spoken to several –
Carlos Fleming and Tony Godsick from IMG, Micky Lawler at Octagon
are three notables – and learned that there's at least
some interest in making the media-agent relationship more productive.
And at the same time, agents will always say they value the
role of media in helping their clients. But our experience
over the last few months reveals a certain talent for keeping
their heads buried in the sand.
It's quite clear that no single panel, forum, event or decree will
make things better. Instead, the recommendation is simple: Each
of us must fight hard every time we interact with an agent –
fight for getting calls returned, fight for arranging interviews,
fight for not getting jerked around during events, news cycles,
etc. It will also help if we continue to share our experiences
with each other so that we can each learn how to better interact
with these folks.
I will continue to communicate more with agents on ways to improve things – and, by all means, please share your thoughts, experiences and ideas with me any time.
Bernard Noat Remembered
as a Friend of ITWA
By Richard Evans
News of Bernard Noat's death came to us belatedly at the US Open
but it was no less shocking or saddening for that. Bernard was
killed in a cycling accident on July 6th. The former tournament
director of what was, in his day, called the Monte Carlo Open was
a very fit and active 71 and cycling, along with the very French
pastime of boules, were amongst his passions.
ITWA owes Bernard an enormous dead of gratitude. When Philippe
Bouin and I were struggling with the need to legally establish
the organisation in a suitable place, Bernard stepped up and offered
to help.
Not only did he cut a way through the Monaco bureaucracy to produce
the necessary papers but did so without charging us a cent. It
showed a side of the man few of us knew and we were delighted that
he accepted his role as Honorary Chairman of ITWA with such enthusiasm.
I think most people in the tennis world had an image of Monsieur
Noat as this rather buttoned-up figure in his blue blazer and club
tie marching around the Monte Carlo Country Club with his walkie-talkie
issuing orders. Maybe you needed to meet his wife, Elyane, to realise
that one needed to have a very good sense of humour to live with
such an amusing and outgoing woman. Bernard did, indeed, have the
capacity to see the funny side of life even if his good humour
was strained on occasion during his dealings with the ATP.
Bernard was proud of what he had achieved at the Monte Carlo Country
Club and rightly so. He fought hard for what he believed was best
for the tournament and guided it through numerous crises. Lynn
and I feel we have lost a good friend and I am sure ITWA members
will want to pay tribute to what he did for our young organisation.
ITWA releases ASSESSING PRIORITIES survey
Link to survey onlineDownload survey
I am writing to you in my capacity as co-president of ITWA to make you aware of a new study ITWA is publishing this month which we hope will make a significant contribution to optimising both the coverage tournaments get from journalists and the working conditions for those journalists. Its full title is “An assessment of priorities regarding the requirements of journalists at professional tennis tournaments” but it will probably become known under a shorthand title of “Assessing Priorities”.
Why a journalistic survey? Because tournaments are having to watch their expenditure, and running a media operation costs money – even if it does bring in revenue for the tournament indirectly by providing coverage – so any way that makes it easier for journalists to cover tournaments has to be a win:win for both sides.
We hope you will read through the whole report, as it will contain some useful information for your press operation. If you’re short of time, please at least read the executive summary, which gives the gist of the survey’s findings.
One of the underlying recommendations is that it can only benefit tennis in general and all parties active in tennis if ITWA maintains a dialogue with press officers, tournaments, and tour bodies. Therefore, if you have any questions or would like to discuss matters arising from this report, please don’t hesitate to contact me.
2006 media survey
for sony ericsson wta tour
MANDATORY
CIRCULATION SURVEY
FOR ALL ITWA MEMBERS
Download survey in Word format
We are engaging in a circulation survey of our membership so we
can prepare a report to present to the tours, ITF, Grand Slams
and tournaments as to how powerful our collective voice is.
We need your participation.
In fact, not only do we need it, but it is required.
It is pretty simple, but we realize that some of you will
have to go fishing for circulation numbers.
But realize that in the end, the time you spend doing this will
pay off in the end.
Also, please make sure to write down all the publications/radio
stations/ web sites you work for and their respective circulations
within the format that we provide.
Please make sure that the numbers are as accurate as possible.