Liga Dekmeijere and Kenneth Caplan

Amex Provides Star Treatment for Lucky Fans

August 16, 2007 - Four lucky fans got the chance to experience what it was like to be a professional tennis player on Wednesday at Rexall Centre, complete with matches against Sony Ericsson WTA Tour star Liga Dekmeijere of Latvia and Carling Bassett-Seguso, the highest ranked Canadian tennis player ever.

Robert King, Kathryn Shaw, Kenneth Caplan, and Tania Hugo, winners of a random draw through the Globe and Mail, received star treatment as part of the American Express Player for a Day contest. 

Their experience actually began on Tuesday evening.  Each of the winners got to spend the night at the official tournament hotel and upon arrival, were given Wilson and adidas packages full of tennis goodies.  On Wednesday morning, they were all picked up by official tournament transportation and brought to grounds of Rexall Centre.

Once on site, they were taken on an insider tour of the stadium, including the players lounge and the locker rooms, and then treated to lunch at the PriceWaterhouseCoopers Lounge.  Following lunch, King, Shaw, Caplan, and Hugo each got a chance to have an individual practice with top Canadian tennis coach Mike Thomson.

After their hard work on the courts, the winners had some time to wind down in the American Express lounge while they geared up and prepared for their upcoming matches.  After a short time to explore the grounds, each player took to the court for a mixed doubles match with Dekmeijere, Bassett-Seguso, and Thomson. They even had to face the media, first with an on-court interview and then a simulated post-match press conference in the same room the real stars speak to the media.

Their dream day ended with tickets to watch the evening matches from an executive suite, and at the end of the night, the four were returned to the official tournament hotel.  It’s safe to say these four players will never forget their day in the spotlight at the Rogers Cup presented by American Express.

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