The Barcelona Open is a clay court tournament that is annually held in Spain. Considered as one of the oldest tournaments, this tournament has always been one of the most important tournaments on clay. Rafael Nadal has won a record 12 titles at the event. The centre court of this event is named in his honor as Pista Rafa Nadal. The tournament is Spain’s most prestigious event after the Madrid Open. This tournament is also famous by the name “Conde de Godo.”
In 1899, the Barcelona Lawn Tennis Club was created. This was one of the major constitutions of the city and was headed by the British Consul. It took some years for the venue to change from Ganduxer to its current location at the Pedralbes. Finally, in 1953 the tournament was created and Vic Seixas was crowned the first singles champion.
In 1968, the tournament was given a new title of the “International Championships of Spain.” It was a part of the Grand Prix Tennis circuit from 1970 to 1989, except in 1971 when it was a part of the World Championsip Tennis Circuit. The tournament is also known as “Trofeo Conde de Godo” and Banc Sabadell is the title sponsor of the event. Banc Sabadell will stay as the tournament’s title sponsor.
Albert Agusti, President of the Royal Club Tennis Barcelona, Fernando Soler and tournament director Albert Costa are the main engines behind making this event successful. In 2009, a new Sports Centre was opened for the members of the club. Hotel Melia, which is located in close proximity to the club is the official hotel of the Barcelona Open. The official transport for the Barcelona Open is offered by Peugeot.
The Barcelona Open’s trophy is a humongous one and weighs nearly 13 kgs. It was designed by jewelers Soler Cabot. It was renewed by J.Roca recently to engrave the names of more winners on the trophy. In combination with this stunning trophy, the winner is also given 4,60,000 Euros and the runner-up receives 2,18,750 Euros.
Players like Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario, Concita Martinez, Rafael Nadal, Carlos Moya, Albert Costa, Felix Mantilla, Julian Alonso, Francis Roig and Galo Blanco have made RCTB the most successful Spanish Club in the world. Currently, the Barcelona Open features as a part of the ATP 500 series of events.
