Written by: Staff on 20th July 2010

Bank of the West Classic to Honor Four Decades of Champions

Billie Jean King and Andrea Jaeger scheduled to appear

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Contact: Sam Henderson (395) 461-9281

July 19, 2010 sam.hendreson@imgworld.com

STANFORD, CA (www.bankofthewestclassic.com) – In celebration of its 40^th anniversary, the Bank of the West Classic will honor “Four Decades of Champions” prior to the 7:30 pm evening semifinal match on Saturday, July 31^st at the Taube Family Tennis Stadium at Stanford University. The event will feature appearances by some of the tournament’s most prestigious winners, including Billie Jean King and Andrea Jaeger.

King won the tournament’s inaugural singles title in 1971 and went on to win the event’s singles championship three times and the doubles title four times. King was ranked No. 1 in the world for five years, won 12 Grand Slam singles titles, 16 Grand Slam women’s doubles titles, and 11 Grand Slam mixed doubles titles. King is often considered the founding mother of women’s athletics.

Jaeger, who will be representing the decade of the ’80s, won the Bank of the West Classic in 1981 and 1982. Jaeger, who achieved a career high ranking of No. 2 in the world, reached the finals of Wimbledon in 1983 and the French Open in 1982. Jaeger’s successful tennis career ended prematurely due to rotator cuff injuries in her right shoulder.

Tickets for the 2010 Bank of the West Classic, which will take place July 26-August 1 at Stanford University, can be purchased by calling the box office at 866-WTA-TIXS (866-982-8497) or by logging on to www.BankoftheWestClassic.com. Single-session tickets for the tournament’s opening round start at just $26.

The 2010 Bank of the West Classic will feature a 30-player singles draw and 16-team doubles draw. The official tournament draw, and first round match-ups, will be announced on Saturday, July 24.

In addition to individual session tickets, full-week packages start at just $575 and include tickets to all 13 sessions, a pass to the exclusive Grand Marnier Plaza Club and an invitation to the Meet the Players Party. Those who purchase a pair of seats will also receive a weeklong VIP parking pass and a Bank of the West Classic Tournament program.

The Bank of the West Classic is also offering several weekend packages starting at $240.

Entering its 40^th year the Bank of the West Classic is the longest running women-only professional tennis tournament in the world. The list of past champions of the event reads like a “Who’s Who” of women’s tennis including Lindsay Davenport, Billie Jean King, Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Andrea Jaeger, Monica Seles, Martina Hingis, Venus Williams and Kim Clijsters.

The event is owned and operated by IMG and serves as the opening women’s event of the Olympus US Open Series. Qualifying will be held July 24-25 and is free to the public.

Log on to www.BankoftheWestClassic.com for more information.

ABOUT THE BANK OF THE WEST CLASSIC: The Bank of the West Classic is the longest-running women-only professional tennis tournament in the world and is the first stop of the Olympus US Open Series. A Sony Ericsson WTA Tour Premier event, the Bank of the West Classic features a 30-player singles draw and a 16-team doubles draw with total prize money of $700,000. Held on Stanford University’s campus at the Taube Family Tennis Stadium since 1997, former champions include: Billie Jean King, Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Andrea Jaeger, Monica Seles, Martina Hingis, Lindsay Davenport and Venus Williams. The Bank of the West Classic is owned and operated by IMG.

ABOUT BANK OF THE WEST: Based in San Francisco, $61 billion-asset Bank of the West (www.bankofthewest.com) offers a full range of business, corporate, personal, trust and international banking services. For the third year in a row, Bank of the West has been ranked “highest in customer satisfaction in retail banking” in California by J.D. Power and Associates. The Bank operates more than 700 branch locations and commercial banking offices in 19 Western and Midwestern states. Bank of the West’s holding company, BancWest Corporation, is a subsidiary of BNP Paribas, among the six strongest banks in the world, according to Standard & Poor’s.

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