Pete Sampras returns a shot by Petr Korda of Monaco during a Champions Cup match in Boston on May 3.

The Providence Journal / Bob Thayer Bob Thayer

Five years after he retired from the men’s pro tennis tour, Pete Sampras remains a marquee attraction.

His July 14 induction ceremony to the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport, which will precede the semifinals of the Campbell’s Hall of Fame Tennis Championships, sold out in the weeks between the September announcement that he was on the ballot and the December count of the vote.

The July 15 Hall of Fame Classic, a 10 a.m. separate admission exhibition featuring Sampras and former pro Todd Martin in singles and Hall of Famers Rod Laver and Stan Smith in doubles, is sold out.

“It’s pretty amazing the marketing power of Pete Sampras,” said Mark Stenning, chief executive of the Hall of Fame.

Sampras drew large crowds to the Champions Cup Boston event this month, his return to competitive tennis for the first time since he left after beating Andre Agassi in the final of the 2002 U.S. Open. He is in Greece this weekend for the Athens Champions Cup, an event that Hall of Famer Jim Courier, the tour founder, put together after Sampras agreed to join. Sampras took his family with him for his first visit to his ancestral homeland.

The Champions circuit is coming to Newport Aug. 22-26 in the form of the Gibson Guitar Champions Cup. Courier, John McEnroe, Mats Wilander, Pat Cash and Wayne Ferreira have entered, leaving Stenning three spots to fill. Michael Chang is a possibility but is nursing an injury. Sampras has given no indication that he would return to the Newpoprt Casino a month after he enters the Hall of Fame, but Stenning and others are wondering if he will reconsider after spending a weekend experiencing the intimate atmosphere of the Horseshoe Piazza and Bill Talbert Stadium and absorbing more than a century’s worth of tennis history in the Hall of Fame museum.

“The answer is it remains to be seen,” Stenning said.

Sampras’ first visit to Newport is shaping up as the highlight of Newport Tennis Week 2007. He has asked his coach, Paul Annacone, a Newport participant when he was on the ATP tour, to present him for induction. Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario of Spain, Sven Davidson of Sweden and Massacusetts-based photographer Russ Adams will also be inducted. Hall of Famer Bud Collins will present Adams, an icon among the visual chroniclers of the game.

Mardy Fish is the only Top 30 player entered in the July 9-15 Hall of Fame tournament so far. James Blake, a regular who did not play in 2006, and Robby Ginepri, who also has played Newport several times, are skipping the tournament this summer.

“Robby is playing an exhibition, and James is in the stratosphere now,” Stenning said.

Despite the absence of more familiar names from the draw, only 50 seats remain available for the finals on Sunday, July 15. Check tennisfame.com or call the tournament office at (401) 849-6053 for details.

Bristol salutes Partington

The Town of Bristol and the Bristol-Warren Regional School District will honor a former longtime teacher and tennis coach when it dedicates the Mt. Hope High School courts on Chestnut Street to John Partington next Sunday (May 27) at noon.

Partington taught math and tennis until retiring in 1980. He was a highly regarded figure in the classroom and on the tennis court and is still well-known in town.

“He is a terrific human being. If you had any problem in math, you could see him for help. His wife Trudy is a sweetheart. They are the nicest people in the world,” said Jackie O’Brien, a 1980 graduate of the former Bristol High School and an administrative assistant in the Bristol Parks and Recreation Department. Partington was the town’s recreation director for several years and launched the recreation department summer tennis program that continues to this day.

Partington, 85, started boys tennis at Bristol High in 1967 and was inducted into the Rhode Island Tennis Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 1984. He played tennis until he was 82.

William Estrella, chairman of the Bristol-Warren School Committee, will serve as master of ceremonies for the event. Diane Mederos, Bristol Town Administrator, Ken Marshall, Town Council chairman, Marc Heddon, a longtime friend, and Partington will speak. A stone monument with an engraved plaque will be unveiled. The public is invited.

Get your serve set

Here are two tournaments to add to the calendar that appeared last week in this space.

July 27-29, Carr/Mook Junior Championships, Broad Rock Middle School, South Kingstown. Contact Sandy Sweet, South County Community Tennis Organization, (401) 932-9345; www.sccta.info; sccta@aol.com.

Aug. 31-Sept. 2, 6th Annual South Kingstown Labor Day Open, Broad Rock Middle School. Contact Sandy Sweet at South Kingstown Parks & Recreation, (401) 783-0721; skrc.org; tennis@skrc.org.

Drop shots

The Community College of Rhode Island’s Joana Augustine (Providence) became the school’s first tennis All-America when she reached the final of the NJCAA Division III Women’s Singles Championship in Plano, Texas. She lost to Maya Vankineni of Oxford College, 6-0, 6-1, and earned second-team All-America recognition. Jonathan Delfino in 1997 and Jason Garrahan in 2006 were Academic All-America tennis players. The No. 2 doubles team of Vanitda Thongithavong (Providence) and Jennie Sandahl lost the consolation final to Abby Geronimo and Lauren Petrolito of Gloucester County College, 8-4 . . . If you are interested in the future of tennis in South County, don’t forget the informational meeting Sandy Sweet and URI women’s tennis coach Sandy Wood are having tomorrow night at 7 o’clock at the Neighborhood Guild in Peace Dale to discuss their ideas for a member-owned tennis club in South Kingstown . . . The Blacksone Valley Tennis Association will hold its seventh USTA Recreational Coaches’ Workshop June 16 from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Slater Park in Pawtucket. The program is geared to those who want to work with new tennis players of those with lower skill levels. Paul Gagliardi, a teaching pro, will be the instructor. The registration fee of $15 includes lunch, fruit, snacks and water. Send it to BVTA, P.O. Box 7302, Cumberland, RI 02864. Contact Joanne Macksoud at (508) 212-8187 or jam10scoach@aol.com.

mszostak@projo.com