News Flash

Debut of Fila's Spring 2010 Center Court Collection

23 Feb '10

4 min read

WTA stars and Grand Slam Champions Kim Clijsters and Svetlana Kuznetsova will be competing for more than just the coveted Billie Jean King Cup at the BNP Paribas Showdown at Madison Square Garden in New York. On February 28th, the day before the showdown event, the reigning US Open and French Open champions will officially debut Fila's Spring 2010 Center Court Collection as they play a "match before the match." The Showdown Qualifiers will test their skills while wearing Fila's latest collection as they compete on Ubisoft's new Racquet Sports for the Wii gaming console by Nintendo. The "match," played head to head on the 185" Gardenvision screen at Madison Square Garden, will be emceed by Scott Lasky of the MSG Network.

Children from the Garden of Dreams Foundation will attend the match, meet the tennis stars, and receive a special gift from Fila & Ubisoft as well as tickets to the BNP Paribas Showdown the next evening.

The "match" and subsequent athlete Q&A session will be broadcast live on both ustream.tv at 2:10pm on Sunday, February 28th. Kim and Svetlana will answer questions about the BNP Paribas Showdown, trading in their tennis racquets for Wii remotes and Fila's latest performance tennis collection.

Fila's Center Court Collection makes its debut in New York in advance of the the official unveiling at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells where the brand's sponsored female athletes will wear the collection. The Center Court Collection was inspired by Fila's rich history in tennis incorporating a contemporary color story that is bright and youthful in hot coral, viridian green and ebony. Signature pieces in the collection include a halter tank, a gathered wrap skirt and a color blocked sleeveless dress.

Racquet Sports is a multisport game for the entire family that includes tennis, ping pong, badminton, squash and beach tennis for the Wii interactive gaming system. Racquet Sports offers unprecedented realism, and pin-point gameplay mechanics bring every serve, swing and backhand to life while replicating the experience in the comfort of the living room.

Clijsters and Kuznetsova are Qualifiers for the BNP Paribas Showdown for the Billie Jean King Cup which will be held for the second year at Madison Square Garden. The pairings for the semifinal matches were determined by using the 2009 year-end rankings, having the highest ranked player take on the lowest ranked. In this fast-paced, no ad scoring format, each participant will compete in a one-set semi-final with the winners advancing to a best of three-set final for the Billie Jean King Cup. Serena (who finished as World No. 1) and Kuzetsova (No. 3) will be paired against Venus (No. 6) and Clijsters who finished her comeback year at No. 18.

Limited VIP tickets and additional tickets are currently on sale and can be purchased at the Madison Square Garden box office, all Ticketmaster outlets and online at thegarden.com.

The "BNP Paribas Showdown for the Billie Jean King Cup" is the featured element of the national "Tennis Night in America" promotion. Through "Tennis Night in America", the USTA will continue its efforts to grow youth participation in the sport of tennis. "Tennis Night in America" is among the sport's largest ever grass roots initiatives.

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