The Thompson Okanagan region continues to be a hot destination for sporting events and sport tourism – with the latest high-profile event being a top-level international men's tennis tournament featuring 72 world-class international players vying for $15,000 in prize money.
Tennis BC, Tennis Canada and the International Tennis Federation (ITF) announced recently that the first annual Capri-Chubb ITF Kelowna Futures Tennis Tournament will run June 30-July 8 at the Parkinson Recreation Centre courts in central Kelowna.
Players from Canada, the United States, Europe, Australia and South America will compete for valuable ATP (Association of Tennis Professional) Tour points. Top players in the Kelowna Futures Tournament will include: Erik Chvojka (CAN); Gregory Ouellette (U.S.A.); Philip Bester (CAN); Pavel Krainik (CAN); Will Gray (U.S.A.); Nicolas Meister (U.S.A.); Leon Frost (AUSTRALIA); Kelsey Stevenson (CAN); Arthur Karagezian (USA); and Dekel Bar (ISR).
Among the Canadians, Eric Chvojka of Montreal is the tournament's top seed and is currently ranked 232nd in the world. 2012 Canadian Davis Cup team member Philip Bester of North Vancouver is also in the Tournament's main draw.
Tennis BC regional director Joachim Nierfeld says, "We are delighted with the calibre of players participating in this event. We're excited to bring high level professional tennis to Kelowna and the Central Okanagan and look forward to giving tennis fans here a terrific show."
The Capri-Chubb event will start with qualifying on Saturday, June 30, Sunday July 1 and Monday, July 2. The main draw begins on Tuesday, July 3 and will continue all week until the champion is crowned on Sunday, July 8. Matches will begin at 10:00 a.m. July 2-5, with feature matches each evening starting at 6:00 p.m.
Tickets are on sale at Nufloors, The Harvest Golf Club, CedarCreek Estate Winey, BMO Harris Private Banking, and are also available through Global, Mission and Lakeview Heights Tennis clubs. Seating is limited.
Full tournament information including draws and player profiles are available online at www.kelownafuturestennis.com.
The organizing committee for this inaugural event for Kelowna includes: Joachim Nierfeld, Regional Director of Tennis BC; Gordon Fitzpatrick, Cedar Creek Estate Winery; Gilles Dufort, Harvest Golf Club; Ian Cull, UBCO; Rob Ahlgren, Yellow House; Holger Nierfeld, Mission Tennis Club; Haarjet Sangha, BMO; Christine Meyer, Volunteer Co-ordinator; and Carla Jackson, Communications.