French Open postponed by 1 week because of a pandemic
The coronavirus pandemic has interrupted the conventional French Open schedule for the second year in a row. The clay-court Grand Slam tennis tournament announced Thursday that it would postpone the launch of this season’s event by one week due to an increase in virus cases in France. This postponement would afford us a little more time to strengthen our health condition which should allow us to maximize our chances of hosting spectators at Roland Garros said Gilles Moretton, president of the French tennis federation.
The French Open has supposed to begin on May 23rd. But the first-round matches will now begin on May 30th. Because of the pandemic, last year’s tournament has postponed back to September with crowds reduced to 1,000 a day. The postponement would have an effect on the grass-court season but not on Wimbledon. Tennis officials increased the period between the French Open final and the start of Wimbledon to three weeks in 2015. However, due to the delay reported on Thursday, the season will be cut to two weeks plus Wimbledon.
Wimbledon has canceled last year due to the pandemic:
The Grand Slam board said in a statement. But, considering the significant obstacles ahead of the FFT in staging Roland Garros, and to prevent any disruption on the remainder of the year. However, the grass-court season will be shortened by one week in 2021. Wimbledon has canceled last year due to the pandemic. The first time the oldest Grand Slam tennis event has not completed since World War II.
The decision to postpone this year’s French Open comes when hospitals in the country near capacity due to virus outbreak. To slow the spread of diseases, new federal regulations imposed including a three-week school shutdown, a month-long domestic travel ban, and the closure of non-essential stores. The French tennis federation said that the decision has made to ensure that the match played “in front of as many fans as possible” in a protected atmosphere.
The Grand Slam board’s executive officer, Ugo Valensi, stated that the company welcomes the delay. However, Alize Cornet, a French tennis player, slammed Sports Minister Roxana Maracineanu’s decision. The Australian Open has postponed by three weeks this year due to the flu, and quarantine constraints hampered the plans of some matches.
