VICKI REID, TENNIS AUSTRALIA: Good afternoon everyone. What an absolute pleasure it is to welcome you here today. My name is Vicki Reid and I will be your MC this afternoon. To begin, I would like to acknowledge the special guests who have joined us this afternoon. Their presence here today signifies the importance of this announcement. Please join me in extending a warm welcome to the Honourable Anthony Albanese MP, Prime Minister of Australia, and Ms Jodie Haydon. His Excellency, Mr Wang Xiahou, Party Secretary of Sichuan. Her Excellency, Ms Shi Xiaolin, Governor of Sichuan. His Excellency, Mr Scott Dewar, Australian Ambassador to China. And His Excellency, Mr Xiao Qian, Chinese Ambassador to Australia. I'm so very proud to represent Tennis Australia here today. For many years, we have collaborated with the China Tennis Association and great partners in China to grow tennis within the region. To signify our continued collaboration, we have a special announcement and to make it, it is my pleasure to welcome Australian tennis legend, nine-time Grand Slam champion, John Fitzgerald.
JOHN FITZGERALD, FORMER AUSTRALIAN OPEN CHAMPION: Thank you, Vicki. Prime Minister Albanese, thank you for your continued support of our great sport. I can assure you it is very much appreciated. Party Secretary Wang, it's so nice to see you again. We met in Melbourne a few years ago and it's a great honour to be here with you today. Governor Shi, thank you for making us so welcome in Chengdu. The Asia-Pacific Wildcard Playoff is such an important, integral part of the Australian Open in January. We know that China's interest in tennis is growing and it is obvious that the future here is very great when a Chinese player succeeds at the AO, broadcast numbers go through the roof. It is so good to see some of your best young players here with us today. The Wildcard Playoffs have provided young talent like yourselves with a direct pathway to the Australian Open. It is my great pleasure now to announce that the AO Asia-Pacific Wildcard Playoffs will return to Chengdu on the 24th to the 29th of November this year in preparation for the 2026 Australian Open.
REID: Thank you, John. I would now like to welcome Party Secretary, Wang Xiahou to say a few remarks.
WANG XIAHOU, SECRETARY OF THE COMMUNIST PARTY OF CHINA SICHUAN PROVINCIAL COMMITTEE:The Honourable Anthony Albanese MP, Prime Minister of Australia, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, good afternoon. It is a great pleasure to gather here in the beautiful city of Chengdu and witness the 2026 Australian Open Asia-Pacific Wildcard Playoffs come back to Chengdu. First of all, on behalf of the [Inaudible] Committee and Provincial Sichuan Government, I would like to extend a warm welcome to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and all of the distinguished guests and express our sincere gratitude to your long-term efforts and promoting exchanges of cooperation between Sichuan and Australia. President Xi Jinping has pointed out that sports are an indicator of social development and human progress and emphasise the core development of mass sports, competitive sports and the sports industry. Over the years, Sichuan has witnessed the vigorous development of these forces. In particular, we have successfully hosted major international events such as the 31st World University Games, the World Table Tennis Championships and the [Inaudible] Badminton Championships. Next year, and next month Sichuan will have hosted the [Inaudible]. These events have not only provided us experiments in hosting such events, but also showcased Sichuan's positive image worldwide. Tennis is sport that is loved by the people of Sichuan. We are happy to see that in Sichuan numerous internationally and domestically renowned tennis players have emerged, such as the 2006 Australian Open and Wimbledon Women's Double Champions, both of whom are from Sichuan. The 2024 Paris Games Women's Singles Champion once lived and trained in Chengdu. The 2025 Wimbledon Wheelchair Tennis Women's Singles and Doubles champion is also a Sichuan native. The achievements boosted Sichuan's presence on the global tennis stage. Today, Sichuan has more their 4500 tennis halls, over 170 tennis clubs and more within 2.2 million tennis enthusiasts. With the support and the influential power of the Australian Open, Sichuan will solidify its position on the global tennis map. In May 2023, during my visit to Australia with the Sichuan delegation, I had indepth discussions with Mr Craig Tiley, CEO of Tennis Australia on strengthening the training of your tennis players in Sichuan, holding Australian Open Wildcard Playoffs in Sichuan and also deepening the collaborations between the Australian Open and Chinese enterprises. The Australian friends responded to positively to these proposals. We believe that the hosting of this event will undoubtedly help the Australian Open gain a stronger foothold in China and showcase its unique drama. We're also [Inaudible] Sichuan to better reach the world and showcase the multifaceted manifestations of the Chinese path to modernisation. We will earnestly implement the important consensus reached between Xi Jinping and Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese, comprehensively deepening exchanges and cooperation between Sichuan and Australia, and promote mutual links between civilisations and mutual understanding between peoples through multiple channels while making every effort to organise the Wildcard Playoffs. We will use the playoff as a medium and bridge to promote more practical results. Here we cordially invite every Australian friend to explore Sichuan province during your visit this time, immersing yourself in the picturesque landscapes, to experience the splendour of the land of the province and savouring the vibrant daily life to appreciate the laid-back charm of Sichuan. Thank you.
REID: Thank you Mr Wang for your remarks. I would now like to welcome the Prime Minister of Australia to say a few words.
ANTHONY ALBANESE, PRIME MINISTER: Well, thank you so much Vicki. And it is great to be with nine-time Grand Slam Doubles and Mixed Doubles champion, Fitzy, John Fitzgerald, Australian legend, to announce that Chengdu will again host the Asia-Pacific Wildcard Playoffs for the Australian Open. And can I thank Party Secretary Wang for the very warm welcome, in all ways, that we have received here the afternoon and for the friendship between Sichuan Province, between Chengdu, this great city, and Australia. Can I thank also Governor Shi for her work in positioning Chengdu for this amazing opportunity. And I also want to acknowledge Mr Liu Miao for the Luzhou Laojiao sponsorship of the Australian Open. It is very important going forward, and it is such a presence now for a number of years, and that is a part of building the success. When I had the honour of meeting with President Xi yesterday, one of the themes of our discussions was improving people-to-people and cultural links between Australia and China, and I can think of no better way than through this sporting engagement, at what is the iconic sporting event in Australia, our Australian Open. The last Australian Prime Minister to visit Sichuan was Bob Hawke in 1986, and at that time he launched an annual Australia-China Tennis Challenge, a gesture of goodwill between our nations. Such relations continued through the Australia-China Exchange Tennis Program, a National Foundation of Australia-China Relations partnership with Victoria University and supported by Tennis Australia. And also the recent Australia-China Youth Tennis Festival held here in Chengdu by Kooyong International Tennis Academy. And so I'm looking forward very much to seeing the winners of the playoffs at next year's Australian Open and I thank very much the young players who are here - the stars of tomorrow. I know that my dear friend Glenn Busby from Kooyong comes here and coaches and spends a lot of time here each year, and he tells me that China will dominate the sport in the years to come - so I wish you all the very best. I am sure the young players here who've been coached, I saw a couple of nods before by Glenn Busby, my very bad backhand volley is not his fault.
REID: Thank you, Prime Minister, and thank you to all of our special guests for your remarks.