Christine Seehofer made the perfect start to her year as the Vienna Classics began on Friday. The World No.1 took home two doubles titles as the host nation dominated the opening day of competition.
Seehofer partnered up with her sister Elisabeth to win the Women’s Doubles title. In the Mixed Doubles she played alongside Frenchman Arnaud Genin for the first time, also taking the title.
There was more success for Austria at the Tennis Point Vienna as Marcel Weigl and Stephan Schmutzer beat the No.1 and No.2 seeds en route to a superb Men’s Doubles title.
Seehofer begins 2019 with two doubles titles
For Christine Seehofer 2019 has begun with business as usual. Teaming up once again with her sister, they won the Vienna Classics Women’s Doubles crown for the second time.
The pair expertly lived up to their billing as favourites. First, they defeated Bettina Bugl and Irina Olsacher in an all-Austrian affair. In the final they also ran out comfortable winners, defeating Stine Krogsoe and Laura Smits without dropping a set to claim the title.
The results were equally as one-sided in the Mixed Doubles, with Seehofer and Genin winning both their matches before tennis. Krogsoe and Roland Pichler were their first victims before beating top seeds Bugl and Emanuel Schopf in the final.
This means that a perfect weekend is very much on the cards for Christine Seehofer. If she can win the Women’s Singles then she will achieve the rare racketlon feat of winning three titles at one tournament.

More glory for Austria at the Vienna Classics
Austria had more to celebrate on day one as Stephan Schmutzer and Marcel Weigl won the Men’s Doubles.
Their first-round match featured three FIR Presidents as current president Duncan Stahl teams up with his predecessor Kreston Hougaard. They faced Weigl, who preceded Hougaard, and Schmutzer, with the Austrians edging a close contest by six points.
It would be an all-Austrian final as Schopf and Mario Gruber beat Finnish pair Tommi Laine and Luka Penttinen. Experienced played its part though and Weigl and Schmutzer were comfortable winners in the final.
Elsewhere, the Men’s B Doubles was won be Koen Hageraats and Guidi Weijel who defeated Alexander Wagner and Thomas Wagner in the final.
The Mixed B Doubles went to Virag and Peter Sakovics who beat Zuzana Vancurikova and Richard Hobzik.
The singles categories begin on Saturday with the finals taking place on Sunday.
Full results from the first day of the Vienna Classics are available here.
Sam Barker / FIR Media Officer
Image Credit: Inge Omey