On the occasion of this 28th edition, some of the players who have made the tournament's glory days agreed to share their memories of the final. On Sunday 16 February 2003, Roger Federer won the fifth title of his career at the Open 13 Provence against Jonas Bjorkman.
After losing the final three years earlier, the Swiss promised tournament director Jean-François Caujolle that he would return until he won.
Roger Federer: "A dream to win in Marseille
"I have three very good memories in Marseille. First, when I beat Carlos Moya, who was 5th in the world. I was not even 18 years old and I was not yet in the Top 200. Beating a player of that calibre was a turning point in my career. My goal was to be number one in the world and I knew that to get there I had to work hard.
Then there was also the first final of my career here. I remember like it was yesterday that match against my very good friend Marc Rosset. And finally, there was the 2003 edition, when I won the tournament against Jonas Bjorkman. It was important for me for many reasons. Unfortunately, the year before, I had to give up playing because I was injured. I felt really bad for the organising team, for the public, for my supporters, because the tournament meant so much to me. And then there was the memory of the first final I lost. So for me, it was a dream to win in Marseille. I think that's what I said after the match. I remember I was nervous before I got on the court, because I was thinking about the match against Marc, where I lost in the third set tiebreak. So after this win against Jonas Bjorkman, I was really happy.
Since my first participation, I always wanted to give my best here. Moreover, I loved playing indoors at the beginning of my career. And Marseille is really a great tournament, very well organised and with an exceptional public. It's a different tournament, you have to see it with your own eyes to realise that. If a young player asked me what I thought of the tournament, this is what I would say: "It's an indoor tournament, but the weather is always great. And it's the south of France, a very nice region, with an incredible public. In short, you will never regret this trip.
Jonas Bjorkman: "A very special supporter!
"It was a long time ago, I only remember the result, not the details. Of course, I lost to Roger Federer, that's easy to remember! I was confident when I came on the court because I had been playing very well all week. And then the month before, I had made the quarterfinals in Milan and I had become a father. My year was starting out pretty well.
In the semi-final, I benefited from the withdrawal of Nicolas Escudé. I say "benefited" but paradoxically, I wasn't really happy about it because I would have preferred to play rather than have this day off. If I'm not mistaken, in the final, I managed to go all the way to the tie-break in the second set. There are certainly things I could have done differently, but it probably wouldn't have made any difference. I know Roger well and the handshake was very friendly. There was also the audience, which was always excellent in Marseille. Every year there was a great atmosphere. On the other hand, I must admit that I don't have many memories of the city because I didn't have much time to walk around. Despite that, I always loved playing in Marseille.
I remember a nice anecdote. My physiotherapist was also the physiotherapist of the Swedish ice hockey team, which included the legendary Peter Forsberg. He was a bit injured and had to be treated. My physio asked me if he could come to the tournament so that he could also take care of him. Of course I said yes, so I had a very special supporter that week, because I had the greatest Swedish ice hockey player in my box! It was really good timing for him, because he was a tennis fan. And for me to have reached the final was all the more nice.
