THE BEST ONE YET - WISMILAK INTERNATIONAL 2005


The 2005 Wismilak International Bali ® was held at the Grand Hyatt Bali in Nusa Dua, from 10 th to 18 th September. For the very frist time. the tournament saw a world number 1 in the form of Lindasy Davenport take part.
In an exciting final against Francesca Schiavone, Linday won 6-2, 6-4. The doubles was another exciting match between Meghann Shaughnessy (United States) and Anna-Lena Groenefeld (Germany) beating Zi Yan and Jie Zheng (China) 6-3, 6-3. All the players really enjoyed their time in Bali and Linday Davenport in her speech after the finals said that she will be glad to be back in Bali in September 2006

FOR THE COMMUNITY AND JUST FOR FUN

Apart from the tournament, the players were also involved in various community events including a coaching clinic hosted by Bank Commonwealth. Players also experienced Balinese entertainment, a fashion show, bungee jumping at Club Med, cookery class, village entertainment, a temple ceremony, a special photo session for various fashion magazines and luxurious spa sessions at Mandara Spa. More activities had been introduced to ensure a fun event for players as well as spectators.

WORLDWIDE EXPOSURE


The women's finals were shown live on ESPN, Star Sports, The Tennis Channel, and NTV with over 40 hours coverage broadcasted to 150 countries worldwide. Last year TV7 was appointed as the local broadcaster.

AWARDS AND RECOGNITIONS

Year 2004 marked special celebrations where Wismilak International Bali® received the Sports and Tourism Innovation Award from the Tourism Ministry of Indonesia for their contribution towards Indonesian tourism and Yayuk Basuki, the Indonesian icon for women's tennis, was awarded the prestigious WTA award. For journalists covering the event, the organiser put together a coverage competition for articles and tennis photographs to encourage accuracy and creativity.

WINNI APPOINTED AS THE OFFICIAL MASCOT


Aside from contributing to tourism, Wismilak International Bali ® also proved its commitment to Balinese wildlife protection by introducing Winni as its tournament icon. A Bali Starling, Winni represents a Balinese endemic bird species which had declined in population to only less than 25 in the world today.