Copyright © 2015. No duplication is permitted without permission from Bob Larson Tennis.

David Haggerty was elected ITF President at the ITF Annual General Meeting in Santiago, Chile on Friday. The 58-year old from the United States succeeds Francesco Ricci Bitti, whose 16-year term as ITF President ends today. Haggerty will serve a four-year term from 2015-19.

Haggerty was elected on the second ballot with 200 votes, over Anil Khanna (IND) with 192 votes. Rene Stammbach (SUI) and Juan Margets (ESP) were eliminated on the first ballot.

Francesco Ricci Bitti has been named an Honorary Life President of the ITF.

Elections also took place for the ITF Board of Directors for the period 2015-19. The following 13 candidates have been elected to the Board:

Katrina Adams (USA)
Martin Corrie (GBR)
*  Sergio Elias (CHI)
Ismail El Shafei (EGY)
Bernard Giudicelli (FRA)
*  Jack Graham (CAN)
*  Anil Khanna (IND)
Thomas Koenigsfeldt (DEN)
Celia Patrick (NZL)
Aleksei Selivanenko (RUS)
*  Rene Stammbach (SUI)
Stefan Tzvetkov (BUL)
Bulat Utemuratov (KAZ)

* returning member

Retiring Board members Roman Murashkovsky (RUS), Stuart Smith (GBR) and Georg von Waldenfels (GER) have been named Honorary Life Counsellors of the ITF.

Over 280 delegates, partners and staff attended the AGM, held at the Santiago Marriott Hotel, and hosted by the Chilean Tennis Federation under its President Jose Hinzpeter.

Haggerty is an experienced tennis administrator, having held a variety of roles within the United States Tennis Association (USTA) since 2001 and within the ITF since 2009. He served as Chairman, CEO and President of the USTA in 2013-14, and was a Vice President on the ITF Board of Directors in 2013-15. He is a former President of the Tennis Industry Association and a current board member of the International Tennis Hall of Fame.

Away from tennis administration, Haggerty had a 30-year career in the racket industry, and is a former Chairman of Head USA, President of Penn Racquet Sports, and President of Dunlop Maxfli Slazenger Sports.

David Haggerty said: “It is a privilege and an honour to be elected President of the ITF. Tennis is the common language that binds all our member nations. It is important that we continue to listen to each other and work together to keep the ITF strong. I want to thank Francesco, who has done so much for the ITF over the last 16 years, for his leadership and friendship.”

Outgoing president Francesco Ricci Bitti said: “I would like to congratulate David Haggerty on his election as ITF President, and wish him all the best for the future. It has been my pleasure to serve as President for the last 16 years, and I am confident that under David’s leadership, the organisation can continue to grow with the support of the ITF staff and our 210 member nations.”

The AGM approved an increase in size of the Board of Directors from 13 plus the President to 15 plus the President to include athlete representation. The additional two athlete members will be appointed by the elected members of the Board and ratification will be required at the following AGM.

The assembly also approved a series of regulation changes and clarifications for the ITF’s international team competitions, Davis Cup by BNP Paribas and Fed Cup by BNP Paribas. This includes the introduction of fifth set tiebreaks in Davis Cup effective from the start of the 2016 competition.

Kosovo has become a member of the ITF for the first time after a successful application for Class B membership. There was also an increase in Class B shares for Poland and Turkey. Two Class C members, Nauru and St Vincent & The Grenadines, have been suspended.

There were ten Awards for Services to the Game approved by the AGM. Charles Trippe (GBR) was nominated by the ITF Board of Directors for his outstanding contribution over 50 years, while Bruce Elliott (AUS) was nominated by the Coaches Commission. Other awards went to Radu Albot (MDA), Sheikh Hasher Bin Maktoum Al Maktoum (UAE), Yves Freson (BEL), Tamas Hamori (HUN), Enrique Ninete (GUM), Aleksei Selivanenko (RUS), Stuart Smith (GBR) and Vladimir Voltchkov (BLR).

The 2016 ITF Annual General Meeting will be held in Zagreb, Croatia in June.

Copyright © 2015. No duplication is permitted without permission from Bob Larson Tennis.