By Martina Hingis
October 21 2004

“Tuesday brought me some chance. After noon we welcomed 300 school kids, I answered their questions and fulfilled their autograph wishes. That was fun! The evening for me was all about the Player Party. I was helping out with photo requests and took care of media agents. But there was enough time to pleasantly entertain me with my table guests, together with my friend Stefan, my mum and Mario Widmer it was really familial. I am sure that something like 350 Party participants also enjoyed the evening.

When I was active I hardly ever came to visit the Players Parties. Either the invitation didn’t fit with my appointments or I had to forsake because I had to play a match the next day. In that case a Players Party is not really the ideal preparation.

The best Players Parties were always at the Australian Open and also at Doha and Dubai. The specialty in Melbourne was that the party was truly for the players themselves, without those many TV and photo cameras. Personally I was more pleased if we could have been amongst ourselves. At the parties at the Australian Open it was as in a disco: a good sound and people would dance. Clever were also the tournament organizations that lured the players to the parties with gifts. It was no matter what the value of the gift was, it was more the anticipation and the excitement about what they were going to give us what I enjoyed.

At the tournament in Zurich the Players Party was in a certain way my guideline. The Alpenrock House where they were held earlier I later on always visited also in private. To enjoy a good fondue there and for desert my beloved Öpfel-Chüechli with vanilla sauce!

Bis Morgen."