RELEASE DATE: Thursday 14th April 2016 TENNIS STAR KICKS OFF THE DAVIS CUP BY BNP PARIBAS TROPHY TOUR IN YORKSHIRE To celebrate the momentous occasion when Great Britain won the Davis Cup by BNP Paribas Trophy, Yorkshire tennis star Kyle Edmund, who was part of the winning team, has kicked off the Davis Cup Trophy Tour in Yorkshire. The Aegon GB Davis Cup Team lifted the trophy for the first time in 79 years after an historic win over Belgium in the 2015 Davis Cup Final last November. To celebrate this fantastic achievement, The Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) is bringing the Davis Cup Trophy Tour to more than 90 destinations across the country including multiple areas in Yorkshire such as Leeds, Sheffield and Ilkley. The tour aims to thank the tennis community who supported the team on its incredible journey and to inspire a new generation to pick up a racket and get involved in tennis. Kyle Edmund, who lives in Beverley, brought the famous trophy to David Lloyd in Hull on Saturday 9th April. There tennis fans, players, and coaches were able to meet Kyle and have a once in a lifetime opportunity to be pictured with the impressive Davis Cup. Kyle Edmund, Davis Cup Champion, said: “Winning was an incredible moment personally and also for all involved and I’m eager to help ensure a lasting legacy following this historic achievement. Seeing everyone’s reaction when they saw the Davis Cup and sharing a bit of that passion we had on court, will hopefully encourage others to get involved and choose tennis as part of their everyday lives”. The Davis Cup Trophy Tour will now move to Sheffield’s Ponds Forge International Sports Centre on Monday 18th April, The John Charles Centre for Sport, Leeds, on 19th April and will be a part of the international tennis tournament, the Aegon Ilkley Trophy on the 16th and 17th June. Sir Gary Verity, Chief Executive of Welcome to Yorkshire said: “Winning the Davis Cup was a tremendous achievement for British tennis and I’m delighted Yorkshire’s Kyle Edmund was such a big part of it. Hearing from Kyle and seeing the fantastic Davis Cup Trophy will no doubt inspire future generations of tennis players so that Yorkshire continues to create sporting champions”. John Crowther, Chairman of Yorkshire Tennis added: “The Davis Cup Trophy Tour is incredibly exciting and the reactions we’ve received from everyone so far has been incredible. We look forward to seeing the continued excitement as the Trophy makes its way around Yorkshire and hope that we can encourage and inspire more children and adults to take part in our great sport.” For more details on the exact timings and locations for the Davis Cup Trophy Tour in Yorkshire please visit www.lta.org.uk/daviscuptrophytour - ENDS - Images: 1. Team GB Winning Davis Cup Back row (L-R): Jamie Murray, James Ward, Leon Smith, Andy Murray, Kyle Edmund. Front row (L-R): Dom Inglot, Dan Evans. 2. Davis Cup Trophy 3. Kyle Edmund with the Davis Cup Trophy in Beverley. WtY Editors’ Notes: Welcome to Yorkshire is the official destination management organisation for Yorkshire, working to grow the county’s visitor economy. Welcome to Yorkshire is a not-for-profit membership organisation, funded in part by grants, sponsorship and Welcome to Yorkshire members. All money raised is reinvested directly back into promoting Yorkshire. Key facts include: Tourism in Yorkshire is worth £7 billion annually The county’s industry employs almost a quarter of a million people For more news and a free image bank http://www.yorkshire.com/mediacentre LTA Editor’s Notes: The Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) is the National Governing Body for tennis in Great Britain, responsible for developing and promoting the sport with a mission to get more people playing tennis more often. It does this under the consumer brand of British Tennis, by working with a broad range of partners and over 25,000 volunteers, to grow the game in communities, clubs and schools. The LTA represents the interests of over 350,000 British Tennis Members, men and women, girls and boys across the country, playing on more than 23,000 courts. The LTA runs and supports a network of 11,500 approved tournaments for players of all ages, the corner-stones of which are five grass court pro events leading up to Wimbledon, held in Nottingham (ATP & WTA), Birmingham (WTA), Queen’s Club-London (ATP) and Eastbourne (WTA), all of which are title sponsored by Aegon, our lead Partner who is helping transform the sport in this country. The LTA works in partnership with its charitable entity, the Tennis Foundation, to provide a tennis provision for more than 20,000 schools, disadvantaged youth as well as promoting tennis as an inclusive sport for anyone with a disability. For further information about the LTA and British Tennis, and to review the British Tennis strategy for 2015 – 2018 visit www.lta.org.uk or follow us on Twitter @BritishTennis For further information contact: LTA Press Team for Leeds and Ilkley Event: Laurie Haines [email protected] 020 848 77 040 Sheffield Ponds Forge Event: Alison Steel (Yorkshire Tennis) [email protected] 07828 030182 .