Czech Republic Wins Its First European Tennis Trophy

Written by: Staff on 8th January 2013

Czech Republic Wins Its First European Tennis Trophy

epa03476897 Czech Republic tennis team hold the trophy after beating Spain in the Tennis Davis Cup World Group Final in Prague, Czech Republic, 18 November 2012. EPA/FILIP SINGER |

Tennis Europe has announced that the Czech Republic is the recipient of the 2012 European Tennis Trophy for Overall Tennis Performance, becoming just the seventh nation to win the Trophy since it was launched in 1990.

The recognition caps a year of outstanding achievements for the Czech Republic, whose Davis & Fed Cup by BNP Paribas titles contributed greatly to the nation securing the Professional Tennis Trophy for the first time.

Progress was not limited to professional tennis however; the Czechs also rose to third in the Junior Tennis category, and climbed to seventh in Seniors Tennis.

Czech Tennis Association President Ivo Kaderka said; “In 2012, the Czech Republic became the first nation ever to win the Hopman Cup, Fed Cup and Davis Cup in the same year. I am convinced that this was not just a coincidence, and is part of a long term trajectory, with our teams also having reached the Davis Cup final in 2009 and winning the Fed Cup in 2011. These successes are based on good work with tennis talents that has been in place for many years. That is also the reason why Czech tennis is amongst the best in the world in the junior category.”

The Junior Tennis Trophy went to Russia for the eighth time in nine years after the nation won five of the continent’s team competitions in 2012. Spain was beaten into second place, but still recorded its highest finish in this category since winning in 2002, having won three of the four Junior Masters titles and the Copa del Sol team event.

Germany once again dominated the Seniors Tennis category, earning almost three times as many points as second placed Austria to retain the title for the 22nd time. Russia showed the greatest improvement, leaping from 11th to 4th thanks to some impressive performances at the European Seniors Championships.

The supremacy of the Netherlands in the Wheelchair Tennis Trophy was as evident as ever, with the nation picking up the title for a 12th consecutive year. Runners‐up France and Great Britain also made significant advances, as did Israel, whose fourth position is the best ever achieved by the nation in any of the contributing categories.

Established in 1990 to recognize and reward the annual achievements of Tennis Europe’s member nations, the European Tennis Trophy takes into account the performances of players and teams representing national tennis federations across four disciplines of the sport throughout the season. The awards will be presented at a special ceremony during the Annual General Meeting of Tennis Europe in Tallinn on March 23rd, 2013.

©Daily Tennis News Wire

Topics: Czech Republic, Czech tennis news, Davis Cup, European tennis news, European Tennis Trophy, Fed Cup, Tennis News