Russia holds off France and Spain to extend European Tennis Trophy run of success

The European Tennis Trophy presented by Lindström award for Overall Tennis Performance will be presented to Russia for a record fifth consecutive year, Tennis Europe has announced.

The award, now in its 20th year, recognises the annual achievements of the European Tennis Federation's 49 member nations, providing a comprehensive overview of the performances of players and teams representing national tennis federations across four disciplines of the sport throughout the season.

Second-placed France reduced Russia's overall lead by almost 1,900 points to strengthen their runner-up spot, whilst third-placed Spain also retain their 2008 position. Amongst the nations to show the greatest improvements in overall tennis performance in 2009 are the Czech Republic (climbing from 8th to 5th), Serbia (12th to 8th) and Croatia (up from 19th to 11th).

Russian Tennis Federation President Shamil Tarpishev expressed his delight at the news of the repeat victory, commenting; "These results are the fruit of many years' work and the highly professional efforts of our federation, which have enabled us to establish new standards in tennis. We are extremely proud that it has been demonstrated once again that Russian players are at the forefront as European tennis continues to lead the world across all levels and types of events."

Spain recaptured the Professional Tennis Trophy for the first time since 2004, ending Russia's four-year dominance of the category. The title - Spain's sixth in total - extends their position as the most successful nation in the history of the professional tennis trophy.

Russia's juniors contributed greatly to their overall win, wrapping up the Junior Tennis title for an unprecedented sixth consecutive year, retaining a massive lead over second-placed France. The junior tennis category once again saw some of the most dramatic changes, with Czech Republic, Serbia, Ukraine, Spain, Sweden and Portugal all improving their 2008 results by huge margins.

Germany once again ran away with the Senior Tennis Trophy, earning almost three times as many points as nearest challenger Austria, who re-claimed a hotly disputed second place from Italy. Russia rose from #11 to fourth, its highest ever position in this category.

The Wheelchair Tennis Trophy goes to the Netherlands, where it has resided ever since its introduction in 2001. France remains in second place for a sixth consecutive year, while Great Britain's 493 points was the highest ever total for the third-ranked nation in this increasingly competitive category.

Tennis Europe President Jacques Dupré announced the results, remarking, "The 2009 European Tennis Trophy has been the most competitive for some years, and reflects a year of consolidation and growth for the sport. The continued success of Russia is an inspiration for all our member nations, and I'd like to thank the Russian Federation not just for these results, but also for the increasingly proactive role that they play within European tennis. I'd also like to congratulate the national federations of Spain, Germany and the Netherlands for their well-deserved wins in their respective categories."

The 2009 European Tennis Trophy presented by Lindström prizes will be awarded at the Annual General Meeting of Tennis Europe in Riga, Latvia in March.

2009 Results by Country
2009 Results by Position
2009 Results by Category
Points Allocation System