Separate appearances by Elena Rybakina and Ana Ivanović will bring adult clinics and youth sessions to the luxury Maldivian resort in November and during the festive season
JOALI Maldives will host exclusive tennis residencies with Elena Rybakina in November 2026 and Ana Ivanović in December 2026.
- JOALI Maldives will host two exclusive tennis residencies in late 2026, featuring Elena Rybakina and Ana Ivanović.
- Rybakina’s programme is scheduled for 17–23 November, while Ivanović’s festive-season residency will run from 22–27 December.
- The workshops are designed for both adults and younger players, with Ivanović’s sessions specifically split into an adult clinic and a children’s tennis camp.
- The programme positions sport as part of JOALI Maldives’ broader luxury guest experience during a key seasonal travel period.
(NEWS) MALÉ, Maldives, 2026-Sep-02 — /Travel PR News/ — JOALI Maldives is adding elite tennis to its late-year guest calendar, with two Grand Slam champions set to headline a pair of exclusive residencies aimed at families and sports-minded luxury travellers heading to the Maldives this winter.
According to details published by Visit Maldives, the resort will host Elena Rybakina from 17 to 23 November 2026 and former world No. 1 Ana Ivanović from 22 to 27 December 2026, giving guests the chance to train in small-format sessions with two of the women’s game’s most recognisable names.
The initiative reflects a wider trend in high-end resort programming, where hotels are increasingly using one-off sporting and cultural residencies to differentiate the guest experience during peak holiday windows. In this case, JOALI is framing the tennis programme as part of its Creative Living philosophy, adding a more active layer to an island stay traditionally marketed around privacy, leisure and personalised service.
Rybakina’s residency, presented as Game. Set. Inspire., will focus on two exclusive workshops for adults and younger players. The Kazakh star is described by the resort as bringing a champion’s perspective to the sessions, an angle supported by her current standing on the WTA Tour, where her official profile lists a 2022 Wimbledon title, the 2026 Australian Open crown and a career-high singles ranking of No. 2.
Ivanović’s December appearance, titled Play Like a Champion, is positioned more explicitly around the festive family market. The programme includes a 60-minute adult clinic for guests aged 16 and above, alongside a 60-minute tennis camp for children aged four to 15. The former Serbian star won the 2008 French Open and became world No. 1 that year, milestones highlighted in official WTA coverage of her career.
For JOALI Maldives, the draw is not only the star power of the athletes but also the way the programming broadens the resort’s appeal across age groups. The November and December dates allow the property to target both shoulder-season travellers and festive-season guests, while packaging tennis as a shared experience for parents and children rather than a niche add-on for serious players alone.
The residencies are being marketed as intimate and highly personalised, suggesting a limited-capacity format more in keeping with luxury resort positioning than large-scale sports camps. That approach may prove especially attractive in the Maldives, where the premium end of the market increasingly competes on curated experiences as much as on villa design, privacy and setting.
The announcement also gives the Maldives’ tourism platform another high-profile luxury story at a time when the destination continues to expand its appeal beyond traditional beach escapes. By pairing world-class tennis with a resort-led island experience, JOALI is effectively turning a short athlete appearance into a broader travel proposition built around exclusivity, family engagement and seasonal demand.
