Record breaking showdown at 2011 ATP Tour Finals – Tennis News
It has been the third consecutive year that record attendance has been observed at the season ending grand finale, the Barclays ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) World Tour Finals at the glorious O2 Arena in London. The prestigious tennis event hosted over a quarter of a million attendants across eight days of enthralling competition from 20th to 27th of November this year.
The ATP circuit ending finale drew 250,256 tennis lovers to The O2 Arena this month, with record audiences online and on TV as well. To an estimate, about 95 million viewers across 184 countries watched the mega event on TV throughout the eight days this time, showing a swelling increase of 60 per cent from the last year. The official ATP website received a record breaking nine million visits during the week, which is 30 per cent more than the last season.
“The Barclays ATP World Tour Finals provided another fantastic finale to an historic ATP World Tour season. We’re thankful for the excellent support and enthusiasm the tournament and players received from fans around the world over the past eight days – from the 250,000 fans who attended in person at The O2 to more than 100 million fans who followed on television and online globally,” told Adam Helfant, ATP Executive Chairman and President.
The grand finale witnessed the defending champion and 16-time Grand Slam winner, Roger Federer of Switzerland, claiming the title for a record sixth time in his career by disposing of the sixth seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France in the final showdown of the year. The Swiss maestro surpassed the five-title haul of Ivan Lendl and Pete Sampras at the ATP World Tour Finals, becoming the first man in the history of Open Era to hold six trophies. It was the 100th career final for Federer and the 70th ATP championship title to his name.
Once again a number of world famous celebrities gathered at The O2 to watch the elite eight-man competition live in London. The Barclays ATP World Tour Finals was honoured with the attendance of Her Royal Highness Princess Beatrice of York and the London Mayor, Boris Johnson. Also in attendance were renown footballers Cristiano Ronaldo, Rio Ferdinand, Thierry Henry, Andrei Arshavin, Robin Van Persie and Nani. Sitting in the crowds were Joe Calzaghe, Peter Gabriel, Grace Jones, David Haye, Lily Cole, Ronnie O’Sullivan, Pippa Middleton and Mollie King as well.
The ATP World Tour Finals is more than just a tennis tournament but it has developed into an enthralling festival, attracting millions of tennis fans all over the globe to be special part of it.
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