Ohio: Elton John Teams Up With Local Tennis Star for AIDS Charity

The 19th annual World Team Tennis Smash Hits tournament took place Thursday at Public Hall in Cleveland. The event, a fundraiser for the Elton John AIDS Foundation and local AIDS charities, visits different cities each year, and this was its first-ever stop in Cleveland. A VIP auction benefitting the AIDS Taskforce of Greater Cleveland kicked off the festivities. "The medicine has become so much more sophisticated," John said. "People have hopes of living normal lives. The challenge now is to get the medicine to people who can't afford it, and to get rid of the stigma that is still associated with AIDS -- that people who get AIDS are ashamed of having it, and they don't tell anyone, and they don't get tested because of the stigma of the disease," he said. John's team edged by the team headed by Billie Jean King, 19-18. Smash Hits has raised more than $10 million since its 1993 launch.

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