PARIS: French Open chief Guy Forget said Friday a government order to limit attendance at Roland Garros to a maximum of 1,000 spectators each day was a “tough blow” for the tournament.
Organisers of the French Open, which gets underway four months later than planned in Paris on Sunday, had hoped for a maximum of 5,000.
That figure had already been reduced from 20,000 and then 11,500.
Instead, the French government on Thursday insisted on tougher restrictions to counter the resurgence of the coronavirus.
“We’ve taken note of the government’s decision. We’re ready, all the players are here, but it’s true it’s a tough blow for the tournament,” Forget told France Info.
French Prime Minister Jean Castex declared that the Grand Slam tournament must be subject to the same restrictions imposed Thursday on sports events taking place in designated ‘red zones’ where the coronavirus is showing signs of resurgence.
“We will apply the same rules at Roland Garros as elsewhere,” said Castex. “We go from 5,000 to 1,000.”
Sources told AFP, however, that the figure does not include credential holders such as officials, media, players and staff.
Earlier Thursday, Forget said he had hoped to protect the 5,000 limit and that the nature of the Roland Garros complex would work in the tournament’s favour.
“We are able to accommodate 5,000, as small as it is, on a 12-hectare area,” he said.
“We stage the tournament on the equivalent of 15 football fields, outdoors. Everyone wears a mask, even the ball boys and girls and chair umpires.”
The limit of 1,000 fans a day represents less than 3% of last year’s total attendance of almost 520,000.
There will also be financial repercussions.
In 2019, Roland Garros accounted for around 80% of the French Tennis Federation (FFT) budget — 255.4 million euros out of a total 325 million.
Ticket sales generate nearly 20% of tournament revenue.
When the planned limit was 11,500 spectators, Forget estimated that “the tournament’s proceeds (would) be halved”, which corresponded to between 130 and 140 million euros.
The US Open in New York, which ended just under two weeks ago, banned all spectators from its sprawling Flushing Meadows complex.
Wimbledon was cancelled for the first time since World War II.

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