World Number One Victoria Azarenka (third left), Stephane Michel, Managing Director of Total E&P (in red) and prize winners pose for a picture at Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex yesterday. Azarenka took time out from her busy schedule to award winners in the prize giving presentation of an international tennis competition yesterday. Azarenka will begin her Qatar Total Open 2013 campaign today.
DOHA: World number one Victoria Azarenka took time out to take part in the prize giving presentation in recognition to National Sport Day yesterday.
Title sponsor Total Qatar, held their corporate tennis competition at the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex, where the oil and gas company ran the final of the men’s women’s finals of the internal tennis tournament yesterday.
Chair and line umpires from the Qatar Total Open officiated the matches.
Belearusian Azarenka, joined the winners, Natalie Hamad and Laurent Menay for the prize presentation.
The Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex also got a visit from the Heir Apparent H H Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani who joined the Qatar Tennis Federation President, Nasser Ghanim Al Khelaifi.
Yesterday also saw a schools festival held on the tennis premises in which children were introduced to the fundamentals of the sport and enjoyed various tennis and fitness drills.
WTA players Simona Halep of Romania and Shuai Zhang of China were on hand to play with the children and take photos.
Qatar Total Open Tournament Director, Saad Al Mohannadi, said of Total’s presence during National Sport Day: “Total hosting their corporate final for their own tennis tournament here at the Khalifa Tennis Complex during the Qatar Total Open is quite fitting. They have shown how invested they are in the growth of sport in Qatar with their sponsorship of various events – both big and small – and we are honored to be able to host their final on National Sport Day, while also hosting the Qatar Total Open.”
Mohannadi added: “Qatar National Sport Day is the perfect platform to expose youngsters to all that tennis has to offer. They can experience the fun of the game and be inspired to pursue their own tennis goals. Seeing all these children outside enjoying fitness and tennis is real inspirational because our aim is to develop the next tennis star of Qatar.”
THE PENINSULA
