Healesville Sanctuary has hosted 27 ballkids from Korea who are here for the Australian Open Tennis Championship which begins next Monday (17 January 2011).

The boys and girls have been carefully selected from thousands of applicants from Australia and overseas each year.

These ballkids have been given a golden ticket that can't be found in any chocolate bar wrapping. Not only will they stand on Rod Laver Arena alongside Roger Federer, Sam Stoser and our own Lleyton Hewitt, they'll also experience Australia's unique native wildlife with a trip to Healesville Sanctuary.

Tournament organisers took time out of the ballkids' training schedule to give them a chance to get up close and personal to some of our country's most iconic species.

"As a zoo-based conservation organisation, Healesville Sanctuary plays a major role in building enduring relationships between people and wildlife, and encouraging our visitors to do the same," Jason Bell, Acting Wildlife Supervisor - Native Encounters, Healesville Sanctuary said.

Three of the visiting Korean ballkids and one Australian host ballboy also got the opportunity to experience a Magic Moment, feeding some of the Sanctuary's King Island Kangaroos. 

Footage courtesy Channel 7 News.