A Great Success!
29th Annual Cajun Classic
Wheelchair Tennis Tournament
March 20-25, 2018
Paula G. Manship YMCA
Baton Rouge, LA
Twitter: @CajunClassic1
Facebook
Links
– 2018 Tournament Results
– BBC coverage
– Baton Rouge Advocate photo gallery
– Interview with Katrina Adams, USTA President
Pictured right: 2018 Men’s Open Singles Winner Alfie Hewett of Great Britain
The 29th annual Cajun Classic Wheelchair Tennis Tournament, March 20-25, in Baton Rouge, made history this year as the action-packed “Super Series” tournament welcomed the Chairman of the Board and President of the United State Tennis Association, and hosted three 2018 Australian Open winners among a field of 110 professional and amateur players from 21 countries, 19 states, and the Baton Rouge area.
Katrina Adams, USTA Chairman of the Board and President, attended the Cajun Classic on Friday, March 23, along with USTA-Southern Section President Derek White. On Saturday, March 24, they were joined by East Baton Rouge Parish Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome who proclaimed “Baton Rouge Day at the Cajun Classic.”
Former touring professional Chanda Rubin, and leaders of the Louisiana Tennis Association and the Greater Baton Rouge Community Tennis Association (the tournament’s presenting sponsor) also attended the festivities, which were followed by an “Up-Down” tennis exhibition that featured Adams, former touring professional Kathrin Sieberth, and world-ranked wheelchair players #3 Aniek van Koot of the Netherlands, and #8 Lucy Shuker of Great Britain.
The Cajun Classic, long recognized as one of the most popular wheelchair tennis tournaments in the world, was elevated this year to the Super Series level, one step below the Grand Slams like the Australian Open and the U.S. Open. There are only two Super Series tournaments in the United States and only six in the world. Read more here.
USTA Chairman of the Board and President Katrina Adams
with the Baton Rouge Wheelchair Tennis Association Board of Directors
Katrina Adams with some of the hundreds of student volunteers
Katrina Adams playing in the Up-Down exhibition with Lucy Shuker of Great Britain
Above (l-r): 2018 Men’s Open Singles Finalist Shingo Kunieda (Japan) and Winner Alfie Hewett (Great Britain)
Above (l-r): 2018 Women’s Open Singles Finalist Zhenzhen Zhu (China) and Winner Diede de Groot (Netherlands)
Above (l-r): 2018 Quad Open Singles Finalist Andy Lapthorne (Great Britain) and Winner Dylan Alcott (Australia)
Above (l-r): 2018 Men’s Open Doubles Winners Stephane Houdet and Nicolas Peifer (France) and
Finalists Shingo Kunieda (Japan) and Gustavo Fernandez (Argentina)
Above (l-r): 2018 Women’s Open Doubles Winners Lucy Shuker (Great Britain) and Diede de Groot (Netherlands)
Above (l-r): 2018 Quad Open Doubles Finalists Antony Cotterill and Andy Lapthorne (Great Britain) and Winners Dylan Alcott and Heath Davidson (Australia) pictured with Cajun Classic Board Members Dawn Tregre and Jennifer Edmonson.
Special Thanks to Our 2018 Sponsors
Underwriters
United States Tennis Association (USTA)
USTA – Southern Section
Louisiana Tennis Association (LTA)
Presenting Sponsor
Greater Baton Rouge Community Tennis Association (GBRCTA)
Bronze Level Donors
A Lil’ One’s Learning Center, Inc., Baton Rouge Women’s Tennis Association, Brownsfield Lions Club, David and Susan Burket, Jr., Capitol City Produce, Chick-Fil-A, Community Coffee Company, EBR Lions Club, EBR Parish Sheriff’s Office, EMCO Technologies, Gorman Brothers, Dirk Hoffman, Kelly Elkins State Farm, Lanman & Kemp-Barclay & Company, Louisiana Lagniappe, McDonald’s National Charity League – River Road Chapter, Dr. John Nyboer, Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center, Paradise Smoothies, Price LeBlanc Lexus, Pride Mobility, Pro Source, Southeast Baton Rouge Lions Club, Southern Maid, Subway Restaurant (Perkins @ Siegen), Triton Industries, LLC, Varsity Sports, Visit Baton Rouge, and World’s Finest Chocolate.
GoFundMe Donors
Lynn Hitchcock, Linda Liskey, Angie Williams, Robert Wu, and Lisa Scalise.
Every time you buy something at Amazon, you can help us. It’s easy, and won’t cost you a penny! Just click here to visit the Amazon Smile website. Sign into Amazon as you normally would and choose the “Baton Rouge Wheelchair Tennis Association” as your charitable organization. Amazon will automatically contribute .5% of eligible purchases to further help the 2017 Cajun Classic.
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About the Cajun Classic
The Cajun Classic Wheelchair Tennis Tournament is sanctioned by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and is one of only two Super Series tournaments in the United States and one of only six Super Series worldwide. Every year, the Cajun Classic attracts top professionals and amateurs from throughout the world.
Players who participate in the Cajun Classic are all ages — seniors to teenagers — and include those who are paraplegics, quadriplegics and amputees, as well as those with birth defects. But, the players’ disabilities have become “different abilities” as they play amazing and highly-competitive tennis.
The Cajun Classic is supported by the United States Tennis Association (USTA), USTA-Southern Section, the Louisiana Tennis Association (LTA), and the Greater Baton Rouge Community Tennis Association (GBRCTA), which is the presenting sponsor.
2017 Cajun Classic Recap
Baton Rouge Wheelchair Tennis Association 