Arnhem to host Wheelchair Singles and Doubles Masters in 2024 | ITF (2024)

The ITF and KNLTB have confirmed the Dutch city of Arnhem as the host of both the NEC Wheelchair Singles Masters and the UNIQLO Wheelchair Doubles Masters in 2024.

The ITF’s year-end wheelchair tennis championships for singles and doubles on the UNIQLO Wheelchair Tennis Tour will take place on 11-17 November at the Sportpark Molenbeke.

Arnhem will become the fifth Dutch city to host the NEC Wheelchair Singles Masters and the fourth Dutch city to host the UNIQLO Wheelchair Doubles Masters, with Netherlands staging both events simultaneously for the second time in three years after the 2022 Singles and Doubles Masters were held in Oss.

With the entries for this year’s Singles and Doubles Masters to be decided later in the year, both events will give the Dutch public another chance to cheer on many local stars. Diede de Groot, Aniek van Koot, Tom Egberink, Maikel Scheffers, Sam Schroder and Niels Vink are all reigning or previous Singles Masters or Doubles Masters champions, as well as being Paralympic medallists.

The KNLTB’s long history of hosting both the Singles Masters and Doubles Masters dates back to 1994, when the NEC Wheelchair Singles Masters, the ITF’s year-end championship for the world’s top eight men’s, women’s and quad singles players, was first held in Eindhoven, where it remained until 1999 before moving to Amersfoort for a six-year period. In 2006 the Singles Masters moved to a new host venue in Amsterdam, which staged the event until 2010.

In 2011 the Singles Masters was held outside of Netherlands for the first time and has since been hosted in Belgium, Great Britain, USA and Spain before now returning to Dutch soil in 2024.

The first ever Doubles Masters took place in 2000, alongside the NEC Wheelchair Singles Masters, in Amersfoort.

Featuring the world’s top eight men’s partnerships, top six women’s partnerships and top four quad partnerships on the UNIQLO Wheelchair Tennis Tour, the Doubles Masters became a standalone event for the first time in in 2003. In 2011 the event returned to Netherlands for the first time since 2002, when it was held in Amsterdam for a two-year period.

The town of Bemmel in the province of Gelderland hosted the Doubles Masters for another two-year period in 2017 and 2018 and while the Singles and Doubles Masters were held in Oss in 2022, Gelderland will now become the 2024 home of both year-end championships in Arnhem, the capital of Gelderland.

David Haggerty, ITF President said: “The NEC Wheelchair Singles and Doubles Masters is a fantastic event and offers a special opportunity for tennis fans to witness the world's best wheelchair tennis players excel. The Netherlands and Team TOC were excellent hosts in 2022, demonstrating their ability to host a world-class tournament in close partnership with the city and province, and we are pleased to work with them again this year. We also thank the city of Arnhem and the KNLTB for their support."

Welcoming the news of the Singles and Doubles Masters returning to Netherlands, Jacco Eltingh, Technical Director of KNLTB, said:

"It's wonderful that we can host this event again in the Netherlands, especially in the year we celebrate our 125th anniversary. Our Dutch wheelchair tennis players have been among the world's elite for years. It's fantastic that we can see them in action again in our own country,"

Helga Witjes, Deputy Sports Commissioner for the province of Gelderland, said: "Everyone who desires should have the opportunity to engage in sports in Gelderland, regardless of any limitations. Sport fosters enjoyment, fosters community and promotes good health. We currently support initiatives such as the Multi Talent Center in Apeldoorn and we work together with the national program Unique Sports. We eagerly anticipate hosting a significant para-sporting event in Gelderland. Thus, we aim to contribute to this endeavor, thereby providing impetus to the development of disabled sports, with all the world-class athletes who will serve as a source of inspiration."

Bob Roelofs, alderman for Sports of the municipality of Arnhem, added: "Sport and inclusivity go hand in hand, and the Wheelchair Tennis Masters highlights this concept. Arnhem is strongly committed to making sports accessible to everyone; therefore, we are incredibly proud to be the host of this tournament featuring the world's top wheelchair tennis players."

NEC has been title sponsor of the Singles Masters since its inception in 1994 and NEC celebrated 30 years of their sponsorship of ITF wheelchair tennis activities in 2021. This year marks the 30th anniversary of the very first NEC Wheelchair Singles Masters in Eindhoven.

UNIQLO first became the title sponsor of the Doubles Masters in 2014 as part of the ITF’s partnership with UNIQLO – a partnership which celebrates its 10^th anniversary in 2024.