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20-723: The Swiss International Championships was founded in 1897 as a men's only event and staged at the Grasshopper Club, Zurich under the auspices of the Swiss Lawn Tennis Association . In 1898 the Swiss Lawn Tennis Association staged the event at Château d’Oex. In 1899 an open women's singles event was added to the schedule, when the venue was still in Saint Moritz. It was then hosted at multiple locations throughout its run including Gstaad. The first edition of

40-877: A humid continental climate , abbreviated Dfb on climate maps. Situated in the Berner Oberland , Gstaad is home to a large ski area in the Alps (220 km (137 mi) of slopes). The middle of the village features a picturesque promenade bounded by numerous shops, restaurants, art galleries, and hotels. Designer labels including Louis Vuitton , Hermès , Chopard , Brunello Cucinelli (company) , Prada , Moncler , Ralph Lauren , and Cartier all have stores in Gstaad, while many smaller boutiques stock labels such as Chloe , Dolce & Gabbana , Tod's , Burberry , Dior , Oscar de la Renta , and Marc Jacobs . Long known for its walking and hiking trails of varying degrees of difficulty,

60-525: A clay event on the 2016 Tour , replacing another clay court event held in Bad Gastein . Four Swiss players won the event: Viktorija Golubic in 2016 as well as Manuela Maleeva (who formerly represented Bulgaria ) in 1991 won the singles, and Xenia Knoll (in 2016) as well as Christiane Jolissaint won the doubles, the latter on three occasions: 1983, 1984, and 1988. Maleeva holds the record, along with Chris Evert , for most singles wins; both players won

80-555: A name change in 1986, when it was titled the European Open until its discontinuation. It formed part of the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) Tour. When the WTA introduced the tiering format to its circuit, the event gradually moved up, from being a Tier V in 1988–1989, a Tier IV from 1990 to 1992, and a Tier III for its remaining years. The WTA announced that the tournament would return in Gstaad as

100-578: A number of gondolas, ski, and chair lifts. The Gstaad Palace opened in 1913 as Gstaad's first luxury hotel. In 1942 the Saanen-Gstaad airfield was opened for military and civil aviation. Helicopter rides were added later and in 1980 balloon flights became available as well. During the World Wars and the Great Depression , the tourism industry suffered and many hotels closed. After World War II, many of

120-587: Is a town in the German -speaking section of the Canton of Bern in southwestern Switzerland . It is part of the municipality of Saanen and is known as a major ski resort and a popular destination amongst high society and the international jet set . The winter campus of the Institut Le Rosey is located in Gstaad. Gstaad has a population of about 9,200 and is located 1,050 metres (3,445 feet) above sea level . During

140-796: The Cavendish family . Many British bands and musicians would play at L'Atelier, a club in Gstaad, in the 1960s and 1970s; one such band was Merlin 'Q' (later Edison Lighthouse ), who stayed a whole winter. Gstaad is known for its luxury hotels , among them the Grand Hotel Park, the Alpina Gstaad , the Gstaad Palace , the Grand Hotel Bellevue, the Hotel Olden, and the Arc En Ciel. In July 2019,

160-731: The Gstaad International tournament was played in 1915 at the Gstaad Palace Hotel , which was known at the time as the Royal Hotel, Winter & Gstaad Palace , and was organized in collaboration with the Lawn Tennis Club (LTC) Gstaad. In 1968 the tournament was renamed the Swiss Open International Championships or simply Swiss Open Championships, and was then staged permanently at Gstaad. The women's event

180-558: The Middle Ages , it was part of the district of Saanen (Gessenay) belonging to the Savoyard county of Gruyère. The town core developed at the fork in the trails into the Valais and Vaud . It had an inn, a warehouse for storing trade goods and oxen to help pull wagons over the alpine passes by the 13th-14th centuries. The St. Nicholas chapel was built in the town in 1402, while the murals are from

200-580: The Swiss Lawn Tennis Association staged the event at Château-d'Œx . In 1899 an open women's singles event was added to the schedule, when the venue was still in St. Moritz . In 1968 the tournament continued into the open branded as the Swiss Open Championships and held permanently at Gstaad the men's event is still active today known as the Swiss Open . The women's event in 1968 was held at Lugano . In 1969

220-543: The event three times, and Maleeva finished runner-up a further three occasions. In November 2023, it was announced that the tournament would cease existing, with the license bought out along with another WTA 250 tournament to form a WTA 500 tournament elsewhere. Swiss International Championships The Swiss International Championships also called the International Swiss Championships or Championship of Switzerland or simply Swiss Championships

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240-512: The large hotels remained closed, but they were replaced with a number of smaller non-hotel accommodation (chalets, apartment houses, residences). Most of the modern resorts and small hotels are built out of wood and retain traditional design elements. The Gstaad Polo Club was founded in 1992, and the Gstaad Yacht Club in 1998. According to the Köppen climate classification system, Gstaad has

260-539: The mountain air and ambiance attract guests year-round from around the world. Gstaad is also known for its ski and cross-country slopes and winter hiking trails. Gstaad, named "The Place" by Time magazine in the 1960s, is widely known for its famous part-time residents and vacationers. Famous regular visitors to Gstaad have included Madonna , Prince Charles and Princess Diana , former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan , haute couture designer Valentino Garavani , writer William F. Buckley, Jr. , and various members of

280-558: The second half of the 15th century. The town was dominated by cattle farming and agriculture until the great fire of 1898. It was then rebuilt to support the growing tourism industry. The construction of the Montreux–Lenk im Simmental line in 1905 and the construction of ski runs (the Ski Club of Saanen open in 1905 followed in 1907 by the Ski Club of Gstaad). The first ski school in Gstaad opened in 1923. The Eagle Ski Club opened in 1957, and

300-728: The women's singles event notable winners include; Charlotte Cooper Sterry (1902), Adine Masson (1904), Elsie Lane (1907), Germaine Régnier Golding (1921–1922, 1924), Lolette Payot (1931, 1933–1934), Louis Brough (1950), Christine Truman (1959), Maria Bueno (1960) and Margaret Smith (1962, 1964). The Swiss International Championships were staged at the following locations throughout its run including Basel , Champéry , Geneva , Gstaad , Les Avants , Montreux , Lausanne , Lugano , Lucerne , Ragatz , St. Moritz , Zermatt , and Zurich from 1897 to 1967. Gstaad Gstaad ( / ɡ ə ˈ ʃ t ɑː d , ɡ ə ˈ s t ɑː d / gə- S(H)TAHD , German: [kʃtaːt] )

320-694: The women's then returned to Gstaad. In 1977 the women's tournament was rebranded as the WTA Swiss Open until 1981 when that event was moved to Lugano. The women's event today is known as the Ladies Open Lausanne held at Lausanne , Switzerland. Former notable winners of men's singles include; André Vacherot (1903), George Simond (1905), R. Norris Williams (1911), Gottfried von Cramm (1934–1935), Kho Sin-Kie (1938), Jaroslav Drobný (1946), Roy Emerson (1959–1961, 1966–1967), Rod Laver (1962), Nicola Pietrangeli (1963) and Rafael Osuna (1964). In

340-458: The women's tournament was staged at Lausanne and was called the WTA Swiss Open , today that event is branded as the Ladies Open Lausanne. The first early edition of the Championship of Switzerland, was played at the Grasshopper Club, Zurich , Switzerland under the auspices of the Swiss Lawn Tennis Association, the winner of the men's event was presented with a cup valued at 500 francs. In 1898

360-443: Was a combined men's and women's clay court tennis tournament established by the Swiss Lawn Tennis Association, and first played at Grasshopper Club, Zurich, Switzerland in 1897. The championships were then held annually and alternated between different venues until 1967. In 1968 the tournament was renamed the Swiss Open International Championships or simply Swiss Open Championships and were then staged permanently at Gstaad . From 1977

380-454: Was called the Gstaad International from 1969. The Swiss International Championships were staged at the following locations throughout its run including Basel , Champéry , Geneva , Gstaad , Les Avants , Montreux , Lausanne , Lugano , Lucerne , Ragatz , St. Moritz , Zermatt , and Zurich from 1897 to 1967. The event was called the WTA Swiss Open from 1977 to 1985, and was played on outdoor clay courts . The tournament underwent

400-421: Was funded by Charles Greville, 7th Earl of Warwick . In a short time, there were more than 1,000 hotel beds in the region. The residents, hoteliers, shopkeepers and tourist offices helped to promote Gstaad to international attention. They supported the construction of ice rinks, tennis courts, swimming pools, ski jumps, and ski and hiking areas. The first ski lifts at Funi opened in 1934-44 and were followed by

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