Launched in 2010 by the Swiss watch brand Longines, the Longines Future Tennis Aces sees the best under-13 international players square off in a one-of-a-kind competition. The experience begins with the Longines Academy training camp on clay to give the players a feel for this surface alongside two renowned specialists, Rémi Barbarin and Christophe Rochus. On Wednesday 31 May, the young talents rose to new heights as they attended the lucky draw ceremony at the Eiffel Tower where they got a chance to discover their group and future opponents.
The tournament was held on the first two days of June on a court installed on the Parvis de la Défense, the esplanade of the city’s business district. It wrapped up this morning with the final between Martyn Pawelski (POL) and Chak Lam Coleman Wong (HKG), with the latter quickly taking control to win in 2-4 4-3 7-6. The two finalists then took part in an exhibition match alongside Alex Corretja, the patron of the 2017 edition, and Andre Agassi, Longines Ambassador of Elegance. The two tennis legends, joined by Juan-Carlos Capelli, Director of International Marketing for Longines, and French Tennis Federation president Bernard Giudicelli, presented the tournament trophy and a Longines watch to the winner. In addition, both finalists received an annual grant until to their 16th birthdays.
This year, Longines is celebrating Andre Agassi’s 10th anniversary as a brand’s Ambassador of Elegance. Since the beginning of its partnership with the legendary American tennis player, the Swiss watch brand has supported the Andre Agassi Foundation for Education, which the athlete founded in 1994. With its aim of expanding public education possibilities for underprivileged young people in the United States, the foundation makes use of strategies, concrete measures and partnerships to offer quality educational opportunities so that young people can reach their full potential.
After the final of the Longines Future Tennis Aces, Andre Agassi paid a visit to the Longines boutique on Rue de Sèvres, which for the next two weeks will sport the colours of the Roland-Garros tournament, for which the brand is the Official Partner and Timekeeper. In fact, Andre Agassi came to meet some owners of the Conquest Roland Garros chronograph, which was the feature of a special sale with the profits going to the Andre Agassi Foundation for Education.
