Posted: Fri, 30 Oct 2009 01:55 PM - 7,799 Readers

By: The Bahamas Weekly

Beijing: Mark Knowles and Andy Roddick Open Doubles, China. Photo: Getty Images

Mark Knowles is thrilled to announce that Andy Roddick will play in the 9th annual Charity Invitational to be held from December 3rd to 5th this year. Andy recently partnered Mark at the Beijing Open where they reached the doubles final. Andy has been ranked #1 in the world previously, and is currently ranked #7. He is the number #1 Ranked American player, 2003 U.S. Open Champion and three time Wimbledon finalist.

The professional tennis exhibition will be held at the National Tennis Centre, Queen Elizabeth Sports Centre at 3.00 p.m. on Saturday 5th December. Admission: Adults $10 and Children $3 (no charge for students wearing their school sports shirts). Tickets will be available from 10th November at the National Tennis Centre, Atlantis Tennis Centre, Village Squash Club, H.G.Christie Ltd. and Lyford Cay School or telephone 242-359-2542.

The major sponsors to date include: Atlantis Resort & Casino, Lombard Odier Darier Hentsch Private Bank & Trust; Pictet Bank & Trust Ltd; Serenity Point, Abaco; The Balmoral; The Bahamas Ministry of Tourism; American Airlines; The Bank of the Bahamas, Everkey Global Fund, Templeton Global Advisors, Odyssey Aviation, H3O and The Ministry of Youth Sports & Culture.

The proceeds of the event will go to aid local children’s’ charities To date over $400,000 has been distributed to various charities.

Andy Roddick: Since 2001, has been one of the most celebrated athletes in United States. Won the 2004 ESPY for Best Male Tennis Player and nominated again in 2005….Honored by the ATP as the 2003 Player of the Year when he became the youngest American to end the year at No. 1 in the Indesit ATP Race…received The Arthur Ashe Humanitarian award in 2005 for his charitable efforts and contributions.

Andy has been featured in non-sports publications ranging from Rolling Stone to Vogue…Some of the most interesting profiles have included an item written by Sir Elton John for Interview Magazine and being selected as the Sexiest Athlete by People Magazine’s Sexiest Man Alive issue in December of 2003.

He hosted the popular comedy program Saturday Night Live on November 8, 2003, becoming the second tennis player (Chris Evert) and only the 10th athlete in three decades to do so…Following his US Open win, embarked on a 12-hour media tour hitting major outlets including the Today Show, MTV, CNN and The Late Show with David Letterman, among others. Hosted a kid’s clinic in Central Park prior to the 2003 US Open with Dave Matthews Band violinist Boyd Tinsley, who is an avid tennis fan and regular supporter of Roddick…Opened NASDAQ Stock Market on August 20, 2003. Has been honored by throwing out the first pitch at several Major League Baseball games, including Game 2 of 2003 Oakland-Boston playoff series. In addition to being featured in a range of publications and appearing on popular television programming, Andy has headlined national advertising campaigns for American Express and Lexus as well as participating in promotional spots for ESPN Sportscenter.

Father, Jerry, is an investor, and mother, Blanche, is director of the Andy Roddick Foundation…Brother John was an All-American tennis player at University of Georgia (1996-98), and now operates a tennis academy in San Antonio…Oldest brother Lawrence, a chiropractor in San Antonio, was an accomplished spring board diver and a member of U.S. Senior National Team.

A big University of Nebraska football fan, the bathroom at his parents home is covered in red-and-white Cornhuskers wallpaper…Moved to Austin, Texas at age 4 1/2, then moved to Boca Raton at age 10…Purchased a second home in Austin in November 2003…Played varsity basketball in high school alongside Davis Cup teammate Mardy Fish, who trained and lived with Roddick in 1999.

Finished as No. 1 junior in U.S. in 1999-2000 and as No. 1 junior in world in 2000…A winner of six world junior singles and seven doubles titles, won the US Open and Australian Open junior singles titles in 2000…Nicknamed “A-Rod” by other players, but ESPN’s Chris Berman dubbed him “Kid Roddick” following an on-line survey of nearly 2,000 voters.

Hobbies include listening to music (favorites include Dave Matthews Band and John Mayer) and watching movies (favorite is Shawshank Redemption)… When not on the road, Andy enjoys spending time with his friends boating on Lake Austin…Travels with Coach and older brother John Roddick (since February 2006), and trainer Doug Spreen, former ATP Tour trainer.

*  Story Contributed by: The Bahamas Weekly