On February 28th, 2011, BNP Paribas, MSG Sports, and StarGames continued the tradition of tennis at Madison Square Garden with the BNP Paribas Showdown. The event renewed classic tennis rivalries of the 1980's and 1990's with Ivan Lendl taking on John McEnroe and Pete Sampras battling Andre Agassi, respectively. ESPN2 aired the Agassi/Sampras match live on television while the Lendl/McEnroe match was streamed live online via ESPN3.
Close to capacity with 17,165 fans, the energy was electric at the Garden. In the first match, McEnroe overcame a sprained ankle from an earlier practice that night to take a 6-3 lead in the eight-game pro-set. Unfortunately, he was unable to continue play and had to retire. Next, while leading their head-to-head series 20-14, Sampras' superb serving and net play helped him overcome Agassi's aggressive returns and groundstrokes, 6-3, 7-5. The night's play brought nostalgia to the fans as they watched these great rivalries.
On December 11th 2010, StarGames and Caesars Atlantic City put on the "Caesars Tribute: A Salute to the Golden Age of American Skating," in Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, NJ. The Tribute brought together an unprecedented group ofover thirty American figure skaters who had represented their country in national, world and Olympic competitions. The event feautred 21 U.S. Figure Skating Hall of Fame members who had combined for 18 Olympic medals, 61 World Championship medials and 141 National Championship medals spanning seven decades. The event was a truly historic ocassion and a night to be long rememberd. Some noted skaters included: Evan Lyscaek, Nancy Kerrigan, Kristi Yamaguhci, Brian Boitano, Scott Hamilton, Tenley Albright, Dick Button, Sasha Cohen, and Sara Hughes.
Click the Image above to visit the Caesars Tennis Classic page on our site!
CAESARS TENNIS CLASSIC
Harrah’s Entertainment, Caesars Atlantic City and StarGames brought tennis back to Atlantic City’s historic Boardwalk Hall on April 10, 2010 with the first annual “Caesars Tennis Classic.”The exhibition tournament showcased five US Open Champions and feature tennis legend Ivan Lendl’s first match since his 1994 retirement. The Caesars Tennis Classic was hosted by two-time US Open and five-time Wimbledon Champion* Venus Williams and featured four matches in a team format.The first match featured 1985, 1986 and 1987 US Open Champion Ivan Lendl going up against former nemesis and 1988 US Open Champion Mats Wilander (Wilander won 6-3).The second marquis match-up showcased 2003 US Open Champion* Andy Roddick winning against 2000 US Open Champion Marat Safin 6-4. The third match featured 14-time Grand Slam men's singles champion Pete Sampras taking on Roddick (Roddick won 6-4). And the final matched pitted Sampras vs. Safin in a rematch of the 2000 U.S. Open final (Safin won 6-4).
*Players may have won more majors since this posting.
BNP Paribas Showdown For the Billie Jean King Cup
On March 2, 2009, 12,000 people braved a winter blizzard to attend the Innaugural BNP Paribas Showdown for the Billie Jean King Cup. The field included 2008 Wimbledon champion Venus Williams, 2009 Australian Open winner Serena Williams, 2008 French Open winner Ana Ivanovic, and 2008 U.S. Open finalist Jelena Jankovic. Venus and Serena defeated Jankovic and Ivanovic, respectively, in one-set semifinal matches. Following a tribute to Billie Jean King by President Bill Clinton, Serena defeated her sister 6-4, 6-3 for the inaugural championship.
The Billie Jean King Cup returned to Madison Square Garden for its second year March 1, 2010. By virtue of winning Grand Slam singles titles in 2009, Serena Williams, Svetlana Kuznetsova and Kim Clijsters were invited to participate in the event. Venus Williams received a wild card into the event as the fourth competitor due to her multiple Grand Slam titles. Two weeks prior to the event, however, Serena Williams was forced to withdraw from the event due to an injury. 2008 French Open Champion Ana Ivanovic took Serena's place in the world-class field that played in front of 11,700 plus fans at the Garden and a live national television audience on ESPN2 and broadband audience on ESPN3. In one set semifinals, Williams defeated Kuznetsova and Clijsters defeated Ivanovic. With an exciting and hardfought match that went late into the evening, Williams outlasted Clijsters 6-4, 3-6, 7-5.
After an eight year absence, professional tennis returned to Madison Square Garden on March 10, 2008 making an impact heard around the world. The NetJets Showdown, featuring fourteen-time Grand Slam Champion Pete Sampras, and the current world's number one ranked player* Roger Federer, played to a sellout crowd of 19,690 along with international television and broadband audiences. The match showed that the love affair between tennis and the Garden, which dates back over 75 years, is alive and well.
*At the time of the match.
For more information, pictures, and videos from the historic match, click on the poster to your left.
A fun-filled show with plenty of TRICKS & TREATS as Nancy leads a hauntingly good cast of world class performers including Kurt Browning, Philippe Candeloro, Josee Chouinard, Liz Manley, Brasseur & Eisler, Urbanski & Marvel and more!
The Best of Halloween on Ice DVD is available on our online shop. DVD special features include: Additional ice segments with Kurt Browning, Michael Weiss, Josef Sabovcik, and Nancy Kerrigan. Feature interview with Nancy Kerrigan and other candid responses on a variety of topics including Halloween, Halloween on Ice, family, the Olympics, and the USFSA Hall of Fame induction.
