Swedish Open
Catella Swedish Open |
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The Catella Swedish Open (or Swedish Open Båstad) is an International Series tennis tournament on the ATP Tour held in Båstad, Sweden in the beginning of July each year.
The first Swedish Open was held in Båstad in 1948 and it has been played each year ever since. The tournament is played on clay and features both a men's singles and doubles tournament. From 1948 to 1990 there was also a women's singles tournament.
History
Swedish Open was first held in 1948.
The first three tournaments were won by Eric Sturgess from South Africa. Other famous champions include Ilie Năstase (1971), Björn Borg (1974, 1978 - 1979) and Mats Wilander (1982 - 1983, 1985). The stadium, in which the tournament is held underwent reconstruction in 2002 to accommodate for the new hotel underneath the seaside bleachers. The stadium is a few hundred yards from the Båstad beach and is very close to Pepe's Bodega, the local restaurant and nightclub.
Title sponsors
The tournament has in the latter years been named after its principal sponsor. These sponsors have changed, thus changing the name of the tournament. Title sponsors include:
- Investor Swedish Open (19?? - 1999), sponsored by Investor AB.
- Wideyes Swedish Open (2000), sponsored by Wideyes.
- Telenordia Swedish Open (2001 - 2002), sponsored by Telenordia.
- Synsam Swedish Open (2003 - 2006), sponsored by Synsam.
- Catella Swedish Open (2007 - current), sponsored by Catella.
International Series Tournament of the Year
Each year, the players on the ATP Tour vote for the ATP Tournament of the Year. Swedish Open has received this honour five times, winning the International Series Tournament of the Year in 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006. Swedish Open is the first tournament to have won this award five times in a row.
Champions
See: List of Swedish Open champions