Paris – Roland Garros Update – By: Cheryl Jones

Written by: Staff on 29th May 2013

French Open tennis tournament at Roland Garros

Paris - Roland Garros Update - By: Cheryl Jones

epa03722662 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France in action during his second round match against Jarkko Nieminen of Finland at the French Open tennis tournament at Roland Garros in Paris, France, 29 May 2013. EPA/IAN LANGSDON |

Paris – Roland Garros Update

The first day of competition at Roland Garros was Sunday, May 26^th. Since then, the weather has fluctuated between frigid and blustery; and chilly and windy. Despite the wintry weather, it has been tennis by the book for the most part. American players are having a better than usual go on the clay. They might have taken a page from Maria Sharapova’s handbook after her win here last year. Before Sharapova’s triumph then, she had laughingly said she often felt like a cow on ice trying to perform well on the terre battue. Then somewhat like the ugly duckling, she became the swan as she skated smoothly to a victorious finish. In 2012, in the blink of an eye, most of the American players were sent packing. This year it’s a new page for the history book of Roland Garros. It’s Wednesday, and American men and women remain in contention.

One of the Americans is 31-year-old Serena Williams. (Her sister, Venus, was disappointed after losing, 7-6, 6-7, 6-4, to Urszula Radwanska of Poland in the first round. Venus, who ranks amongst the most successful women in tennis history, has never won on the terre battue of Roland Garros.) Venus’ slightly younger sister, Serena has been in the game for so long it seems as if she might have been a toddler when she began her quest for excellence in tennis, This time, she could be on the path to a second Roland Garros title, not because of her performance in Paris so far, but because she has been consistently winning tournaments during 2013. Her excellent play in Paris is after a lengthy drought of satisfying performances when her only successful chase for the title spot was in 2002. Last year, she lost in the first round to Frenchwoman, Virginie Razzano.

Razzano has had a less than stellar career, but that particular match was likely the pinnacle of her playing days. She managed a 4-6, 7-6, 6-3 victory over the more highly ranked Williams, despite her own 111^th ranking at the time, but she fell in the next round to a young woman from The Netherlands, Arantxa Rus. Today, that is water under the bridge. Williams is focused and competitive, much as she’s always been, but certainly with an urgency that takes into consideration her age and the fleeting nature of competing on an elite level as a professional athlete. She’s moving into the third round after today, after she defeated Frenchwoman, Caroline Garcia 6-1, 6-2, (The other American women still in contention are Jamie Hampton, Vania King, Varvara Lepchenko, Bethanie Mattek-Sands, Melanie Oudin and Sloane Stephens,)

The top seeded American man in Paris is Sam Querrey. (He’s a stitch ahead of John Isner in both the rankings and the seeding for the event.) After his match with Lukas Lacko, whom he defeated 6-3, 6-4, 6-4, he opened up about his plans to reinvent himself on the court. He spoke of his new focus for improving his play – himself. He expounded, “I mean, yeah, my attitude has gone up and down in the past, but I felt like lately I was a little bit down so I just tried to be extra positive and extra upbeat today. You know, (it) seemed to work, so (I’ll) try to just do it again the next match.” Trying to speak about his being the top US player, he pointed out the obvious, “It’s cool to be the top American, but it’s all about the world rankings. That’s the main focus.” So far, so good, as Querrey managed another victory late Wednesday, defeating Jan Hajek of the Czech Republic, 6-4, 7-5, 6-4, and he moved into the third round. (The remaining American men are Ryan Harrison, John Isner and Jack Sock.)

Transformation on a personal level is often a part of most everyone’s game, whether it’s tennis or life in general. On a grander scale, Roland Garros is looking toward changes that could revolutionize the physical grounds of the tournament space as well as provide the future landscape for continued growth. Presently, it is like an island with actual boundaries that have come with its setting as a complex that is in the midst of an historic urban area of Paris. The powers that be within the French Tennis Federation are working with the city of Paris to provide a solution for the over-crowding and antiquated stadia.

For a little over two weeks each year, the tournament is a village – albeit, lacking in the usual nightlife one might expect to find in Paris, but nonetheless a population. Possibilities for expansion are limited because of lack of space. When most localities want to provide a more grand scale in a limited setting, they build “up”. With a surface du jour that is terre battue that isn’t an option. For several years plans have been mulled over and discussed from a myriad of angles.

Saturday, May 25^th, just before the tournament opened its gates to the public who were there to welcome players from all over the world, Gilbert Ysern, the tournament director, introduced Jean Gachassin, the president of the French Tennis Federation as well as Anne Hidalgo, First Deputy Mayor of Paris. Each of them spoke directly about specific plans for the future of tennis at Roland Garros.

Gachassin began the press conference seeking to define the purpose of refurbishing Roland Garros. In the past, growth of any kind has been a sore spot for some locals because the only area that seems feasible for expansion is in a botanical garden that abuts the property to the west.

Being careful not to provide fuel for the opposition, Gachassin consistently utilized non-inflammatory phrases to describe the plans. The point was made clear when he said, “But, beyond tennis itself, our duty is to make sure this event will continue to live. It has a very important role to play for French influence in the world. Also, there are jobs at stake and there is a lot of money that is generated by the tournament. Also, the tournament can fund many tennis projects.”

Previous plans have called for the tournament to move to an area near Versailles, which is very near Paris. It is easy to recognize that the revenue any large event brings to an urban area is substantial, but difficult to quantify. Hotels and restaurants are the most obvious, but in reality every aspect of the economy would be affected negatively if the tournament moved anywhere else – taxi service, bus and metro services, laundry/dry cleaners, and much more.

First Deputy Mayor Hildalgo whose areas of responsibility include sport in the city of Paris, spoke of other aspects of the tournament, calling it an integral part of the heritage of the city. Because of that, she said it is important to have the tournament remain in Paris. She stated that the project was not an expansion but a modernization. The greenhouses in the Botanical Gardens are historic. She assured listeners that there would be no impact on the existing structures and that moreover, new facilities would be added to benefit more than the nearby community as a whole, but also school children and arborists alike. Hildalgo insisted that the planned expansion would “promote Paris and its place in the world.”

Ysern provided more specifics, saying that of course Roland Garros wants to remain in the city. He said, “The first thing we want to do is have a roof on Philippe Chatrier so there will no longer be rain interruptions.” He went on to outline the provisions that would allow the public to have more space. Now, the crowd is restrained to what he called the “historical triangle”. Foot traffic areas would be expanded to allow for comfortable movement within the confines of the grounds. Now, it is consistently difficult to move around the grounds comfortably. It often feels like the beginnings of a crush at a rock concert. The planned development would expand the area of the complex to the west to include the d’Ateuil gardens. He assured the audience, “From the outside, if you want too see it is a tennis court, you can’t. You can only see it from an aerial view. What you will see from the garden will be greenhouses only.” The overhead view will reveal a sunken court that evidently won’t be visible at ground level at all.

Ysern continued to explain the low-impact improvements and then mentioned that the cost has been estimated at 340 million Euros. The tournament will provide 320 million and the city of Paris, 20 million. In answering questions about the project, a positive spin was always in place. The improvements should provide opportunities for a variety of events that could or might be taking place, such as Fed and Davis Cup competitions, Olympic venues, and other sport related events.

Even though approval from the city has not yet been provided to complete the expansion, Roland Garros is moving ahead as if it has. It will be interesting to watch as events unfold that could change the way tennis is staged at Roland Garros. Stay tuned for more in the future. There will be a planning meeting held soon after the completion of the tournament on June 19, 2013.

Topics: BETHANIE Mattek-Sands, Cheryl Jones, French Open, jack sock, Jamie Hampton, John Isner, Melanie Oudin, Paris tennis news, Roland Garros, Ryan Harrison, Sam Querrey, Serena Williams, Sloane Stephens, Sports, Tennis News, Urszula Radwanska, Vania King, Varvara Lepchenko, Venus Williams

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