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Clijsters Heads Eastbourne Line Up World No. 2 Kim Clijsters heads the impressive line up for this year�s Hastings Direct International Championships in Eastbourne. World No. 2 Kim Clijsters heads the impressive line up for this year�s Hastings Direct International Championships in Eastbourne. 17 out of the World�s top 30 players will be at Devonshire Park, Eastbourne from 14 � 19 June, 2004, as the players prepare themselves, on grass, for Wimbledon the following week. Clijsters, making her first appearance at the tournament, is hot favourite to take the title, held for two years by Chanda Rubin. However Clijsters will have to overcome the defending champion, currently World No. 12, who will be looking for a hat-trick of titles after announcing her return to the tournament. World No. 5 Anastasia Myskina and teenage prodigy Maria Sharapova both head the Russian contingent. Initially labelled �the new Kournikova� for her long blonde hair and good looks, Sharapova quickly established herself in her own right after reaching the last 16 at her Wimbledon debut last year. They also join former World No. 4 Magdalena Maleeva, former Wimbledon Champion Conchita Martinez and former Wimbledon semi-finalist Jelena Dokic, with two Wild Cards left for further additions to the strong line up. To celebrate the news of the defending champion�s return, the Corporate Hospitality team recently announced they would be keeping hospitality packages at 2003 prices for all those booking before 31 May 2004. From �95 per person, entertain your clients with reserved Centre Court seats, three course luncheon, afternoon tea and live TV link to the action on Centre Court, all from the comfortable surroundings of your hospitality suite. Exclusive packages are also available with your own private dining area, complimentary bar or private box facilities offering exclusive seating on Centre Court, for only �15 per person. Ladies can enjoy some added glamour this year with free manicures exclusively in the hospitality village on Finals Day. Organisers are also planning a floral extravaganza this year thanks to sponsorship from Eastbourne company Floral Occasions. The company are designing more table and pedestal displays than ever before, exclusively for the Championships, as well as supplying the orchid button holes for Ladies Day on Thursday. Ilie Nastase fans can also enjoy the special Legends events on Thursday and Friday after 5pm on the outside courts, as the original bad boy of tennis is back in town, along with Peter Fleming, Johan Kriek, and the ever-popular Amritraj brothers, Vijay and Anand. The Oxford and Cambridge rivalry also continues with the return of the annual Varsity matches on the outside courts. Corporate Hospitality opens from Tuesday 15 to Saturday 19 June and tickets are selling fast. For more information telephone the Corporate Hospitality office on 01323 415435 or e-mail [email protected] or visit www.visiteastbourne.com/hospitality. Quote �2003� to receive last year�s prices for a limited period only. Ends Entries as at Friday 14th May: Ranking Nationality 2 CLIJSTERS, KIM BEL 5 MYSKINA, ANASTASIA RUS 10 SUGIYAMA, AI JPN 12 RUBIN, CHANDA USA 14 KUZNETSOVA, SVETLANA RUS 16 FARINA ELIA, SILVIA ITA 18 MARTINEZ, CONCHITA ESP 19 DOKIC, JELENA SCG 20 SMASHNOVA-PISTOLESI, ANNA ISR 21 SHARAPOVA, MARIA RUS 22 SCHIAVONE, FRANCESCA ITA 23 ZULUAGA, FABIOLA COL 24 MALEEVA, MAGDALENA BUL 25 DECHY, NATHALIE FRA 28 SPREM, KAROLINA CRO 29 RAYMOND, LISA USA 30 BOVINA, ELENA RUS 31 SAFINA, DINARA RUS 32 PISNIK, TINA SLO 33 SERNA, MAGUI ESP 36 SANCHEZ LORENZO, MARIA ESP |
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