Doha, 29 October 2010 | samstosur.com

Sam Stosur’s tireless work off the court promoting tennis to fans, media, and local communities has won her the WTA’s Diamond Aces Award for 2010.

“It’s a really nice feeling to receive this award as it is very important for players to give back to the sport and do everything we can to grow it and promote it globally,” said World No.7 Stosur.

WTA CEO Stacey Allaster presented Stosur with the award in Doha where the Queenslander is through to the semifinals of the season-ending championships.

“Sam is not only one of the world’s best athletes, she is extremely aware of the opportunity of giving back to women’s tennis and connecting the sport with media and sponsors.  It is because of athletes like Sam that the WTA has so many fans around the world,” said Allaster.

Stosur is Tennis Australia’s Facilities Ambassador – a role that sees Stosur promoting the repairing and building of tennis courts around the country.

“This is a terrific program that is helping tennis all over Australia and I’d like to think I can help make a difference,” said Stosur.

“If we can keep building new courts and fixing some of those that are in need of repair it will give kids more and more opportunities to play on quality surfaces.”

Stosur will visit Launceston’s new $2.4 million regional tennis centre on Monday 31 January 2011.

So far the courts and facilities program has approved 904 courts for upgrades and generated $148.5 million in funding for facilities in the past three years.