The Robert Abdesselam Trophy returns to France

The 10th edition of the Robert Abdesselam Trophy took place from 21-23 August and brought together four international teams — Spain, Belgium, Great Britain, and France — for a competition featuring one Women’s Doubles, one Men’s Doubles, and two Mixed Doubles per match.

The French team prepared with great professionalism, with some high-altitude training in the Vercors Mountains. There, the players enjoyed scenic hikes through historic forest trails, breathtaking views over Grenoble, and, most importantly, an intensive tennis camp led by their long-time coach, Bruno Delorme, at the Villard-de-Lans Tennis Club. Off the courts, the group took time to share meals and test their culinary skills, further strengthening team spirit and camaraderie.

On arrival in Avignon, the competitors faced stormy weather. The French delegation managed a short training session on the superb courts of TC Montolivet before heavy rain rendered the grounds unplayable. The club’s President, Jean-Pierre Azam, and his wife Gisèle extended a warm welcome to all participants, their passion and dedication keeping the Avignon club thriving.

Due to the weather, the opening matches were held indoors on a single court instead of the planned four outdoor ones. Consequently, the format was shortened to a single set of six games with a tie-break at 6-6. France started the tournament strongly, defeating Great Britain — a new permanent participant in this long-standing competition — by 4–0 in the morning session. Spain then overcame Belgium in the afternoon.

The following day saw the return of sunshine, allowing play to resume outdoors for the France–Belgium encounter. Despite gusty conditions, France prevailed 3–1. In the afternoon, players and guests enjoyed a guided cultural visit to the Chartreuse de Villeneuve-lès-Avignon, a monastic complex renowned for its austere order and beautiful architecture.

The evening’s social programme featured a warm reception hosted by Odile de Roubin in her elegant family residence, where players gathered for an aperitif before the official dinner — a highlight of the event’s convivial atmosphere.

The final day brought the much-anticipated showdown between France and Spain. The French team were eager to reclaim the Robert Abdesselam Trophy, which had been in Spanish hands since the 2023 edition in Madrid.

The opening women’s doubles match proved challenging: Spain’s pair, Pauline Rodriguez (a former French player ranked no. 15) and Noelia Perez Penate (former WTA no. 121), showed their experience, while France’s Isabelle Billard-Delage sustained an early injury. Fortunately, the French men responded with a narrow win, leaving the teams level at one match apiece.

It was therefore down to the two mixed doubles to decide the title (and avoid a super tie-break in the event of two tied teams after all the matches). The French pairs — Chantal Grimal & Alain Moracchini, and MarieDo Larras & Nicolas Fourcade — made an excellent start, taking their first sets 6–1 and 6–0 respectively. Grimal and Moracchini secured their victory swiftly, while Larras and Fourcade were pushed into a deciding tie-break after their Spanish opponents, Noelia Perez Penate and Fernando Gomes de Segura, fought back to win the second set 6–4. The final tie-break was a thrilling affair, keeping spectators — including loyal French supporters Pascale and Christine — on edge. In the end, the French pair held their nerve to win 11–9, sealing overall victory for France.

The Robert Abdesselam Trophy thus returned to France, to the delight of players, organisers, and supporters alike — a fitting conclusion to three days of high-level tennis, sportsmanship, and international friendship.

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Welcome to the IC of Bolivia!

We are very pleased to announce that the creation of the new IC of Bolivia was formally approved at our AGM in July and warmly welcome their members to our IC community.

Bolivia celebrates a rich tennis history, which started with the arrival of British and North American immigrants at the beginning of the 20th century, who worked in railroad construction and mining and began practising the sport in mines at Uyuni and Oruro. The Bolivian Tennis Federation (FBT) was founded on 24 March 1937 in Catavi (Potosí) with the aim of organizing and promoting tennis, and is now affiliated with the ITF and the South American Tennis Confederation.

Today, there are around 16,000 active tennis players in Bolivia. Nearly 10,000 of these are ranked in the National Federation, and 12 players have also been ranked within the ATP or WTA. The country has 32 clubs spread across nine ‘departamentos’, including three centenary clubs: National Tennis Club Oruro, Tennis Club La Paz and Cochabamba Tennis Club. Other major clubs are in Santa Cruz and other cities, including Sucre and Tarija. The clubs have served as meeting places for people of different backgrounds and have promoted values such as discipline, respect and teamwork.

Discussions around the creation of the IC of Bolivia started at the IC Centenary celebrations at the All England Lawn Tennis Club in August 2024 – which were followed up with approaches to professional players to secure their support. At the start of 2025, the founding team worked alongside the IC Council and members of the ICs of Argentina and Uruguay to create the statutes for a new IC of Bolivia, and held a founding day with their 19 founding members to establish the Constitution on 1 March in La Paz.

The founders presented their plans at the IC AGM on 6 July and the creation of the IC of Bolivia was formally approved.

From this point, the board of the IC of Bolivia plan to:

• Hold their first AGM
• Onboard around 20-30 new members
• Set up a philanthropic programme that will offer tennis coaching for disadvantaged children in key cities around Bolivia
• Start the organisation of an IC of Bolivia Invitational event for 2026 – working with the ICs of Argentina and Uruguay
• Work with the IC Council to create the IC of Bolivia website and social media pages.

Please join us in welcoming the IC of Bolivia to our IC community!