FLUSHING, N.Y., August 19, 2008 - The USTA today announced that reigning Frech Open and Wimbledon champion and new world No. 1 Rafael Nadal of Spain and reigning French Open champion and world No. 1 Ana Ivanovic of Serbia will be the top seeds at the 2008 US Open in men’s and women’s singles, respectively.  The 2008 US Open will be played at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing, N.Y., August 25 - September 7.

Nadal, the Olympic gold medalist in men’s singles in Beijing, is the No. 1 seed at the US Open for the first time.  He will be followed by No. 2 Roger Federer of Switzerland, the four-time defending US Open champion; No. 3 Novak Djokovic of Serbia, the reigning Australian Open champion; No. 4 David Ferrer of Spain; and No. 5 Nikolay Davydenko of Russia.  Americans Andy Roddick of Austin, Texas, and James Blake of Tampa, Fla., are seeded 8 and 9, respectively.

Ivanovic, who won her first Grand Slam title at this year’s French Open, is followed by No. 2 seed Jelena Jankovic of Serbia; No. 3 seed Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia, the 2004 US Open champion; No. 4 seed Serena Williams of Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., a two-time US Open champion and winner of eight Grand Slam singles titles overall; and No. 5 seed Elena Dementieva of Russia, the Olympic gold medalist in women’s singles.  American Venus Williams of Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., is seeded 7.

No. 6 seed Dinara Safina of Russia clinched the 2008 Olympus US Open Series Bonus women’s title, and will play for a potential $1 million in bonus prize money at the US Open.  The men’s winner will be crowned following this week’s Pilot Pen Tennis in New Haven, Conn.

Nadal, 22, has won eight titles this year including the 30^th of his career at the ATP Masters Series event in Cincinnati.  He will attempt to become the first man to win the French Open, Wimbledon and US Open in the same year since Rod Laver in 1969.  On Monday, the five-time Grand Slam champion took over the No. 1 world ranking after holding the No. 2 ranking for a record 160 weeks.

Ivanovic, 20, has won two titles this year, including her first Gland Slam at Roland Garros.  She also reached the final of the 2008 Australian Open and the 2007 French Open.

For 2008, the US Open followed the ATP and WTA Tour rankings to determine the men’s and women’s singles seeds.  This is the seventh consecutive year that the US Open has seeded 32 players in both singles events.

The singles draws for the 2008 US Open will be conducted Thursday, August 21 at 11 a.m. at the TimesCenter in New York City.

2008 US Open Women’s and Men’s Singles Seeds

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The USTA is the national governing body for the sport of tennis in the U.S. and the leader in promoting and developing the growth of tennis at every level — from local communities to the highest level of the professional game.  It owns and operates the US Open, the highest attended annual sporting event in the world, and launched the Olympus US Open Series linking 10 summer tournaments to the US Open. In addition, it owns the 94 Pro Circuit events throughout the U.S., and selects the teams for the Davis Cup, Fed Cup, Olympic and Paralympic Games.  A not-for-profit organization with 725,000 members, it invests 100% of its proceeds in growing the game.  For more information on the USTA, log on to usta.com.