DEUCE Magazine Spring 2005 Issue on Sale

Subscriptions to the ATP's Official Magazine Available for the First Time

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Alison S. Kim
akim@atptennis.com

03/22/05 - The ATP’s official magazine, DEUCE, goes on sale this week for the first time ever via subscription. The Spring 2005 issue, to be unveiled Tuesday night at the joint ATP-Sony Ericsson WTA Tour awards ceremony in Miami, features a cover story on Roger Federer by acclaimed author Mark Mathabane.

The magazine now is available through leading bookstores and subscriptions via ATPtennis.com. The spring issue is the first edition as part of a new partnership with Skies America International Publishing & Communications, a custom magazine publisher based in Portland, Oregon.

The Spring 2005 issue features Mathabane’s personal essay on World No. 1 Roger Federer and his rise as a global tennis ambassador for underprivileged children. Mathabane’s first book Kaffir Boy told of his life and ultimate escape from apartheid in South Africa, and the assistance and motivation that he received from tennis legends Arthur Ashe and Stan Smith. Mathabane has followed Federer’s career and met the Swiss star immediately following his recent visit to impoverished communities in South Africa, where the Roger Federation Foundation sponsors more than 30 children.

DEUCE Spring 2005 also features a behind-the-scenes match day photo essay with James Blake, a profile on former Wimbledon champion and now Rotterdam tournament director Richard Krajicek, and shows how Andy Roddick earned more than 100,000 frequent flyer miles in 2004. “Shark Bites,” a column featuring statistical tidbits from ATP stats guru Greg Sharko, debuts in the new issue.

Former Roland Garros champion Albert Costa guides readers through a visit of his home city Barcelona while Murphy Jensen catches up with rock star Gavin Rossdale, who is equally adept with racquet as guitar. DEUCE also sits down with three-time Roland Garros champion Gustavo Kuerten on the eve of his comeback to the ATP circuit next month.

“When we decided to first publish DEUCE in 2002, we did so because we believed there would be demand in the U.S. market for a comprehensive, high-quality magazine about men’s tennis,” says David Higdon, ATP Senior Vice President, Communications, who serves as Editor-in-Chief of DEUCE. “Skies is a great partner that brings a wealth of experience, knowledge and enthusiasm to this partnership. We’re pleased to work with them on this magazine.”

"It's an honor to publish DEUCE, and to partner with a world-renowned organization like ATP," says Skies America President James R. Rullo. "We are looking forward to the challenge of expanding the scope of DEUCE and nurturing the magazine to its full potential."

Skies America was founded as a custom publisher in 1979 following airline deregulation, and they have published a number of in-flight magazines including Northwest Airlines, Braniff and Midway. Over the years, they expanded their custom publishing to include business-to-business magazines as well as sports publications, working with two National Basketball Association (NBA) teams and one Major League Baseball (MLB) team. They began a Japanese-language publishing division in 1990 when working with Northwest Airlines.

The change from an annual publication to quarterly will allow DEUCE to provide more timely insights into the players and the tournaments. DEUCE will continue to be distributed at leading bookstores including Barnes & Noble at ATP tournaments and online at ATPtennis.com.

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