Tennis legend Martina Navratilova expressed sympathy for the victims of the terrorist attacks in the United States on Monday evening at a low-key press conference for the Toyota Princess Cup, which also started Monday in Tokyo. "I have to offer my condolences to all the people involved," the Czech-born American said. "Thousands perished and many, many others were indirectly affected." Tournament director Koji Tanaka indicated that it was touch-and-go whether or not the event would go ahead.
"I'd like to thank the sponsors for making the tournament possible," he said. "We feared we might not be able to hold the tournament, so I'd like to thank them."
Navratilova, 44, who will team up with Spain's Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario in doubles here, also said things could have been different.
"Had this tournament been held last week, there's no way many of us would be playing," she explained. "But people have their jobs to do and now it's time to get on with our lives. Tennis is a sport and it's also a business and we need to do our job and try to put a smile back on people's faces."
Japan's top female player Ai Sugiyama expressed sympathy for the players who felt it necessary to pull out of the tournament, particularly defending champion Serena Williams. "Of course I can understand why Miss Williams can't be here and my heart goes out to all the people in the United States. I understand it's difficult for the tournament not to have these players but I'm going out there to do my best."