WTA Champion Cibulkova Receives Hero's Welcome at Home

Bratislava, November 1 (TASR) – Slovak tennis player Dominika Cibulkova returned from the WTA Tour in Singapore to her homeland on Tuesday ranked as the official world No. 5 women’s tennis player.

After defeating world No. 1 Angelique Kerber 6-3 6-4 in the WTA Finals on Sunday (October 30), Cibulkova brought home the victory trophy and 1,250 points added to her ranking.

Landing at Vienna Airport on Tuesday morning, Cibulkova was greeted by Slovak fans, family and friends. From Schwechat she went to Bratislava to begin another leg of her media programme. “I’m incredibly overjoyed. Although Tuesday will be quite tough; from here we’re going to a press conference and an autograph signing. There’s a public holiday in Slovakia today, so we’ll see how many people will come. We’ve got a private celebration later in the evening and we’ll be flying off for a vacation on Wednesday,” Cibulkova detailed her imminent plans.

“We celebrated my success of a lifetime at the hotel a little bit, shared toasts with the organisation team. On Monday, I had a photosession with the (Billie Jean King) trophy and had a wonderful time. Originally, we were supposed to fly from Singapore straight to Maldives for vacation, but I wanted to stop by at home and celebrate this. They lent us the trophy, since we would have to wait two weeks for a replica and it needs to be returned to London in a day or two,” Cibulkova said at her meet-and-greet with the media.

After her triumph at the WTA Finals, the number one Slovak tennis player has already set her sight on another goal – winning the Grand Slam title. “I’ve always dreamed of winning one of the Grand Slam tournaments. If a tennis player wants to succeed at such an event, all the planets must be well-aligned, and being in good shape and having peace of mind are a must. The next season will be a great challenge for me,” she told the media.

Cibulkova’s success in Singapore resonated among Slovak fans, who flocked to the autograph signing to take selfies with the Slovak player, take pictures with the trophy or get autographs on T-shirts and photographs.