One of the originators of the Umag Stars Open is Silvio Marić, former member of the Croatian football team. “The idea was to create a recreational ambiance which would complement the program of this great ATP tournament. I believe it will be interesting, as we have already welcomed a number of friends and celebrities from all walks of social life who love to watch and play tennis. This is a fantastic venue for such a tournament and, hopefully, it will become a tradition,” Marić said.
The draw for the Umag Stars Open gave us the opponents in both singles and doubles competition, which means everything is now ready for the tournament to kick off. The players will be playing on Courts 6 and 7 “as long as there is daylight”.
Furthermore, this year Umag will host the first ever ITF Wheelchair Tennis Croatia Open by HEP. “It all began last year, when I participated in a panel discussion as part of the Talking about Sports program. Afterwards, the head of the tournament’s executive committee Arlen Brozić and our sponsor, power company HEP, suggested we actually organize this tournament,” explained Anto Joskić, Croatia’s best-ranked wheelchair tennis player and participant in the tournament.
The first stage of the tournament, featuring ten players, will take place on the courts of the Umag Academy, while the final will happen at Stella Maris’ Grandstand. The country’s wheelchair tennis association believe such a competition, which is a part of the ATP tournament, is a perfect example of integrating people with disabilities into society.
This year, as many as seven side competitions will take place throughout the Plava Laguna Croatia Open in Umag, including Umag Stars Open and ITF Wheelchair Tennis Croatia Open by HEP, both starting on Thursday. Today, the Social Arena hosted the draws for these two tournaments.
