Venus Williams, the current Grand Slam doubles, Wimbledon, Australian Open and US Open champion, has become the first Sony Ericsson WTA Tour player to consecutively win the Whirlpool 6th SENSE Player of the Year Award.
The Award honours the player who has demonstrated the most intuitive play during the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour. It was presented to Venus by Silvano Oneto, Regional Director, Export Division, Whirlpool Europe at the Doha round of the Tour, in Qatar.
Venus becomes the first player to win back to back awards, and joins former world number one Justine Henin (2005 and 2007) as the only other player to win the award twice. Maria Sharapova (2006) is the only other player to win the Award since its introduction in 2005.
Venus was one of 10 players short-listed via an online competition organised by Whirlpool, Premier Sponsor of the Tour. Tennis fans were invited to visit www.whirlpool.eu or www.sonyericssonwtatour.com and vote for the player they felt best displayed 6th Sense attributes of precision, control, intuition and sensitivity in their play. Votes from fans poured in for Venus following her dominant displays and inspired Grand Slam doubles wins at Wimbledon and the US open, helping to attract more votes than world number two Dinara Safina and Nadia Petrova.
Picking up the award, Venus said: “It’s a great honour to win the Whirlpool 6th SENSE Player of the Year Award and become the first consecutive winner. This year has been another great one for me and I really appreciate the European fans’ continued support. Tour players, including the young stars of the future, are pushing standards ever higher. The difference between winning and losing is often a moment of intuition when the perfect shot becomes a reality.”
Venus’s double-handed backhand is renowned on the Tour as being her speciality and it was this devastating shot against Agnieszka Radwanska in Miami that excited the fans to register their vote for their 6th SENSE player of the Year 2009. Venus set up her opponent with a wonderful cross-court forehand before driving the backhanded winner down the line past her opponent.
On presenting the award to Venus, Silvano Oneto said, “Venus is a great champion and I am delighted the European fans have recognised her outstanding ability. Top players demonstrate how important intuition is in their repertoire of skills, just as Whirlpool demonstrates the importance of 6th SENSE technology in its innovative products. It is with deep pleasure that we present this award to Venus Williams.”
Ends
Image Caption: Whirlpool 6th SENSE Player of the Year Venus Williams with her award.
5th November 2009
Editors’ Notes:
About Whirlpool
With around 12,500 employees, a sales presence in over 30 European countries and manufacturing sites in seven countries, Whirlpool Europe is a wholly owned subsidiary of Whirlpool Corporation. The world’s leading manufacturer and marketer of major home appliances, Whirlpool Corporation has annual sales of approximately $19 billion, 70,000 employees, and 67 manufacturing and technology research centers around the world. The company markets Whirlpool, Maytag, KitchenAid, Jenn-Air, Amana, Brastemp, Bauknecht and other major brand names to consumers in nearly every country around the world. Whirlpool’s European Operations’ Center is located in Comerio (VA), Italy. For further information on the company, please visit the Web Site www.whirlpool.eu.
About the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour
The Sony Ericsson WTA Tour is the world’s largest premier professional sport for women with more than 2,000 players representing 90 nations competing for $70.8 million in prize money at the Tour’s 60 events in 34 countries. More than 4.7 million people attended women’s tennis events in 2007 with millions more watching events on television networks around the world. The Sony Ericsson WTA Tour season concluded with the Sony Ericsson Championships – Qatar 2009 in Doha, Qatar, on the October 27th, 2009. Further information on the Tour can be found on the Internet at www.sonyericssonwtatour.com
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