Top class international tennis tournament in the capital

From June 27 to July 3, the Linkyard Bern Open, one from Tennis Sporting Club Bern organized, international tennis tournament takes place in Bern. The tournament director, Matthias Jauslin, explains why this is a premiere and what you can expect from this event.

You are organizing the Linkyard Bern Open, what makes this competition unique?

The linkyard Bern Open is the first and only international ITF tennis tournament on Stadtbernese soil. Although there is the ATP Challenger in Biel and the ATP tournament in Gstaad, with the ITF Future we are deliberately offering young Swiss and international young players the opportunity to gain initial experience at the lowest level of professional tennis.

How did you come up with the idea to organize a tournament of this size?

In tennis, with Hingis, Federer, Wawrinka, Bencic, Teichmann, Golubic, Vögele Laaksonen and other top 200 players, Switzerland is very well represented in the world rankings, and people like to forget the up-and-coming tennis talents. We want to show this with the tournament in Bern. Even at this level, tennis is very exciting and there is an opportunity to experience this top tennis up close and live in the capital.

Who will take part in the Linkyard Bern Open and what are the possible requirements for participation?

Player registrations are made directly via the ITF (International Tennis Federation) website. We expect the top players to be ranked around 500 in the world ATP rankings. In addition, some Swiss top 20 players will certainly take part. The requirement is an account with the ITF and participation is based on the player's current ranking in the player's ATP/ITF world rankings. Then there are players who can play directly in the main table using a wildcard (participation without qualification). These will certainly be young players from Swiss Tennis. As tournament director, I can still give out a wildcard for the qualification, which I will award to a Bernese tennis player.

What will be the highlight of the tournament?

On one side, the highlight of the tournament is the proximity to the matches. At Sporting, we have the opportunity to watch the games directly on the tennis court. Another highlight is the Bern Open Dinner at Casino Bern on July 1, where the Bernese scene meets to support the tennis scene in Bern in a pleasant atmosphere.

What do you personally hope for from this competition?

That we will have many spectators who will become enthusiastic about tennis as a result of this tournament and that we will be able to offer young Swiss up-and-coming players a platform in their home country where they can get the best out of themselves in familiar surroundings.

Does the upcoming competition also represent an opportunity to acquire young talent for the sport of tennis?

Absolutely. We communicate in the surrounding neighborhood, in and around Bern. We hope to make tennis attractive so that children and young people are interested in this great sport.

Why is it worthwhile to visit the linkyard Bern Open?

Top tennis in the city of Bern. International top-class tennis can be experienced uniquely and up close and personal with free admission. We are looking forward to many visitors.