Brussels, Belgium (Sports Network) - Three-time champion Kim Clijsters said
she will retire from tennis for the second time after this year's U.S. Open.
The former world No. 1 star, currently sidelined with a hip injury that will
force her to miss the French Open, had already announced that 2012 would be
her final season on the WTA, but she originally said the London Olympics in
late-July/early-August would be her final event.
"I will end my career at the U.S. Open," Clijsters said at a news conference.
New York "is where I enjoyed my greatest triumphs and it is a very special
place for me."
The U.S. Open will be held from August 27-September 9.
Clijsters decided to skip the current clay-court season in order to prepare
for the grass at Wimbledon and the Olympics, which will both be held at the
famed All England Club.
The 28-year-old four-time major champion first retired in 2007 because of
injuries and to start a family, but returned to tennis in 2009, and went on to
win her second U.S. Open title that year. She titled again in Flushing
Meadows in 2010.
The oft-injured Clijsters has appeared in only 13 of the last 32 Grand Slam
events.
The Sports Network