Tennis Tournaments Around The Globe To Stick With Plans For Crowds Despite Djokovic Fallout - UBITENNIS

Tennis Tournaments Around The Globe To Stick With Plans For Crowds Despite Djokovic Fallout

An outbreak of COVID-19 at a high-profile event founded by the world No.1 hasn't put others off from welcoming fans to their events in the near future.

By Adam Addicott
7 Min Read

Organisers of a series of tennis events set to take place within the coming weeks have insisted that they will allow fans to attend despite the controversy generated by Novak Djokovic’s Adria Tour.

The world No.1 has come under heavy criticism after an outbreak of COVID-19 at the Zadar leg of the Tour over the weekend which has resulted in it officially getting cancelled. Grigor Dimitrov, Borna Coric, Djokovic and two coaches all have the virus. Viktor Troicki, who played in the Belgrade leg the weekend prior, also tested positive. Organizers of the event had been under fire over its lack of social distancing protocols and social gatherings. In Belgrade, 4000 people attended the event each day.

“I am so deeply sorry our tournament has caused harm,” Djokovic said in a statement. “Everything the organisers and I did the past month, we did with a pure heart and sincere intentions.
“We believed the tournament met all health protocols and the health of our region seemed in good conditions to finally unite people for philanthropic reasons.
“We were wrong and it was too soon. I can’t express enough how sorry I am for this and every case of infection.”

In the wake of the fallout, both the ATP and USTA released statements saying that they will apply strict anti-COVID-19 measures when their tournaments resume. Meanwhile, the US Open has already confirmed that their event is taking place behind closed doors for the first time in its history. However, others still believe they will be able to safely host their events with fans attending.

Next Month the German capital of Berlin has outlined plans for hundreds of fans to attend their Bett1 Aces tournament, which is being organized by the same people who run the Mercedes Cup. Six male and female players will play at two locations in the city between July 13-19 with €200,000 in prize money for both events. Kiki Bertens, Dominic Thiem and Elina Svitolina are all set to take part. 1,000 spectators will be allowed to attend the Steffi Graf stadium and around 300 in the hangar at Tempelhof.

“When we host the tournament in mid-July, there will be a strict hygiene concept that we will coordinate with the Berlin Senate,” tournament director Barbara Rittner told Deutsche Welle.
“We will have around 1,000 spectators at the Steffi Graf stadium and around 300 in the hangar at Tempelhof.
“It will be important to carefully observe all regulations and to test the players beforehand. This is one of the requirements for these events.
“We will treat the situation and regulations very respectfully.”

Rittner, who was ranked as high as 24th in the world during her career, has been a fierce critic of the Adria Tour. Going as far as branding it an ‘absolute catastrophe’ and suggesting that ‘success has gone to the head’ of some players without mentioning names. Despite the sharp criticism, she admits that no event will be safe from the virus.

“Of course, regardless of the Adria Tour, we can also get a message at any time that a player has tested positive and cannot play,” Rittner said.
“We can only ensure that the strict requirements are adhered to as correctly as possible and ensure that further planning is not jeopardised.”

The DraftKings All-American Team Cup in Atlanta is set to feature the top eight American men with all of them currently being ranked inside the top 100. The three-day event will see players split into two groups. They plan to allow 450 fans to attend the event each day, which works out as roughly 30% of the stadium’s capacity in Peachtree Corners.

According to Forbes magazine, players will be tested for both COVID-19 and any antibodies prior to taking part. They will also be staying at the same hotel on one dedicated floor for them. Masks at the event will be issued, but not mandatory.

“Every day we’re doing a daily temperature check both for the players and for any and all tennis patrons, staff and vendors that enter the venue,” tournament director Eddie Gonzalez told Forbes.
“We feel like we have an opportunity to show the world that a live tennis event with fans can be successful,” he added.

Meanwhile, the WTA Tour will resume on August 3rd at the Palmero Open in Italy, which has been one the worst affected countries in Europe by the pandemic. Nevertheless, organizers still believe they can allow people to attend their event due to the relative low number of cases in the region at present.

“We believe that around 500 spectators can be present in the stands, divided between the two stands . At the entrance, the fans will have to go through a thermoscanner (to check their temperature),” tournament director Oliviero Palma told reporters prior to the Adria Tour fallout.

Sports events have been previously blamed for worsening the global pandemic. Professor Tim Spector, from King’s College London, said a Champion’s League match involving Liverpool and the Cheltenham horse racing festival contributed to a rise in COVID-19 deaths in the UK. However, those two events took place before the country was placed into a full lockdown.

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