Roland Garros Titles Awarded

Wheelchair Tennis athletes Shingo Kunieda (JPN) and Esther Vergeer (NED) have won the Men and Women’s Singles title in Paris, France, at the Roland Garros Grand Slam NEC Wheelchair Tennis Tour.

Taking place on 4 June, Kunieda and Vergeer both received their Roland Garros titles, making it a fourth successive win for each of them. Both received their 2009 International Tennis Federation (ITF) World Champions Awards in the presence of top athletes Roger Federer and Gustavo Kuerten.

The Men and Women's Doubles finals were decided in championship tie-breaks, with Vergeer losing in the Women's Doubles event at a Grand Slam for the first time. After going head-to-head in the Women's Singles final, Sharon Walraven and Vergeer hit the court hard together in the doubles final. However, top seeds Daniela di Toro (AUS) and Aniek van Koot (NED) came back to take the second set and carried their momentum into the championship tie-break, winning 3:6, 6:3, 10:4. Van Koot won her second successive Grand Slam title and di Toro won her first since Wheelchair Tennis events took on Grand Slam status in 2009.

Kunieda collected his second title of the day in the Men's Doubles, as the French fans had something to celebrate with Stephane Houdet partnering the world’s ranked number one. The world's top two ranked singles players made a fine start to the final, but Robin Ammerlaan (NED) and Olsson came back late in the second set before pushing Houdet and Kunieda in the championship tie-break. However, the top seeds eventually sealed a 6:2, 5:7, 10:8 victory to add to their Australian Open victory.