News

NEWPORT, R.I. — The International Tennis Hall of Fame has appointed former Swedish tennis pro Ingrid Lofdahl-Bentzer as Vice Chairman of the Enshrinee Nominating Committee. This committee is critical to the foundation of the organization’s mission, as its focus is to develop the annual ballot of nominees for enshrinement in the Hall of Fame. The committee is chaired by 5-time major champion Stan Smith and is comprised of 22 individuals from all aspects of the sport, including former players, journalists, historians, and administrators.

“Ingrid has been a dedicated and active participant on the Enshrinee Nominating Committee for many years, and she has tremendous depth in her knowledge of tennis from an international perspective,” commented Smith, who also serves as President of the International Tennis Hall of Fame. “We’re very pleased to welcome her to a more involved role on this important committee.”

Of the appointment, Lofdahl-Bentzer commented, “I am honored to serve the sport of tennis in this interesting and important role. The history of tennis is built upon the success of its greatest champions and the contributions made by many dedicated leaders to grow the sport. It is a privilege to be part of the committee that works to honor these great legends and to celebrate the rich history of tennis.”

Lofdahl-Bentzer was one of the founders of the WTA. She was ranked in the world top-15 on the WTA Tour in the 1970’s and was the No. 1 ranked player for Sweden. She won five WTA Tour titles during her career and was a member of the Swedish Fed Cup team for eight years. She currently serves on the Fed Cup Committee.

After retirement from her active tennis career, Lofdahl-Bentzer served as Head of Women’s Professional Tennis for the International Tennis Federation from 1995 – 1999. She then went on to become the International Sponsorship Director for Sanex, which was the title sponsor of the WTA Tour at the time. She also served as a European Head of Press for the ATP World Tour and was a consultant to the Monte Carlo Tennis Masters, representing the tournament on the TPL.

In addition to her work in tennis, Lofdahl-Bentzer has been highly active in the squash community, most recently serving as Chairman and Acting Chief Executive Officer of the Women’s Squash Association (WSA), a position she held from May 2011 until earlier this year. She was an active board member of the organization from 2005 – 2014, and served as Chairman from 2008, adding the Acting CEO role in May 2011. During her tenure as Chairman and Acting CEO she lead a re-branding of the organization from Women’s International Squash Players’ Association (WISPA) to its current name of Women’s Squash Association and helped to grow the WSA Tour significantly to its current 72 events in 25 countries, as well as representing women’s squash on the Olympic Bid Committee.