50-Year-Old McEnroe Leads Senior Field This Week in Rio

Joining McEnroe in the field of eight champions are two-time French and Australian Open champion Jim Courier, 1987 Wimbledon champion Pat Cash, 1986 French Open finalist Mikael Pernfors, former US Open and Wimbledon finalist Mark Philippoussis, former U.S. Davis Cup standout Jimmy Arias, and Brazilian standouts Fernando Meligeni and Jaime Oncins.

The Rio Champions Cup will be the second of eight events on the 2009 Outback Champions Series, the global tennis circuit for champion tennis players age 30 and over. The event will mark the first Outback Champions Series event held in Brazil.

"We are looking forward to bringing Outback Champions Series tennis to Brazil for the first time and have an excellent field of players that will provide high-level tennis and entertainment in Rio," said Jon Venison, co-founding partner for the Outback Champions Series.

McEnroe, who turned 50 years old on February 16, reached his sixth career singles final on the Outback Champions Series at the Champions Cup Boston, losing to Pete Sampras in a hard-fought final 7-6 (10), 6-4.

Following the match, Sampras said he was "in awe" of McEnroe and his level of play at his age. Thirty years ago in 1979, McEnroe won his major singles title at the US Open -- the first of his four titles in Flushing Meadows. McEnroe also won three Wimbledon singles titles and, on the Outback Champions Series, won titles in Boston and Surprise, Ariz., in 2008.