| © ATP
 The world’s top tennis players, tournament sponsors and fans assisted charity efforts during the prestigious Tennis Masters Cup in Shanghai, raising funds for ACE (Assisting Children Everywhere) – the partnership between the ATP and UNICEF – through donations made for aces served on court, silent auctions and Feder-bear Beanie Baby® sales on site.
Altogether, ACEs for AIDS and player memorabilia raised close to 315,000 RMB (approximately $40,000) during the eight-day circuit finale.
The tournament's premier sponsors, including Mercedes-Benz, South African Airways, Lacoste and RADO, donated up to 1,000 RMB for each ace served on opening Sunday and during the final weekend of the Tennis Masters Cup. The singles and doubles players combined for 174 aces over the four days, raising 133,050 RMB for UNICEF. The first round robin match between circuit ace leaders Ivan Ljubicic and Andy Roddick featured 35 aces alone.
 The charity auction at Qi Zhong Stadium featured autographed t-shirts and banners from the ATP’s stars, with Tennis Masters Cup champion Roger Federer’s framed shirt fetching the highest amount of 28,000 RMB. Two Mercedes-Benz bobby cars, signed by all the players in the elite eight-man, eight-team field, attracted a total of 25,000 RMB.
The ATP raised additional funds through the exclusive on-site sales of Feder-bear Beanie Baby®, which made its public debut at the UNICEF booth in Qi Zhong Stadium. More than 2,300 Feder-bears were sold during the Tennis Masters Cup, amounting to a 75,000 RMB contribution to UNICEF. Mirka Vavrinec, the longtime girlfriend of the ATP World No. 1, was among the Shanghai fans who stopped by the booth to purchase a number of Feder-bears.
The Feder-bear is an official Ty Beanie Baby® produced exclusively for ATP by Ty. Proceeds from the sale of each $8 bear will benefit the ACE program. The take-home version of UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador Federer will be available for purchase worldwide this holiday season.
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-- UNICEF and the ATP joined forces at the beginning of 2005 with an aim of creating a better world for every child. Through ACE -- Assisting Children Everywhere -- the two organizations work to use tennis’ popularity to help secure access to education, protection and health for the most vulnerable children. |
