By Chris Oddo | Monday May 30, 2016
Rain washed out play on Day 9 in Paris, giving Roland Garros tournament director an opportunity to ratchet up his roof rhetoric.
Photo Source: Chris Levy
The first French Open washout in 16 years has cast a gloomy pall over the tournament, and first-year tournament director Guy Forget couldn’t help but wear some of that dreariness on his face as he addressed media on Monday in Paris to discuss how the tournament planned to move forward in both the near and distant future.
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“I'm coming in front of you tonight just to express my frustration,” Forget commenced.
Though downtrodden in spirit, the 51-year-old also gave off a bubbly sense of purpose. He was there to make lemonade out of the lemons that he had been given. A washout—loss of a complete Day of scheduled play—at a Grand Slam is the worst possible scenario, and the tournament likely lost 2 million euros by sending its fans away with promised full refund (The Frenchman says they’re insured for such happenstances), but Forget clearly also saw this catastrophic day as an opportunity to plead his case for the necessity of a roof over Court Philippe Chatrier, Roland Garros’s No. 1 showcourt.
“The money that you might lose, once again, is irrelevant,” he said. “You know, our concern now is not [the loss of] money. The concern today is to give a good image of our sport… I'm glad to speak in front of you today to carry on that message.”
The message, specifically? Stop talking about building a roof and start building it.
“We have talked about that roof in Paris 15 years ago already,” he said. “It's a long process. You know, once again, I have joked about it the other day, saying things were slow, a bit slow in France. But today I think is the day to just say, you know, Stop. Everyone has to realize that people will take the decisions at a high level. Not only in the media when some of our politicians will say, ‘No, we support the process and the future expansion and of the stadium.’ The people that actually are making the call, I mean, they are the ones who have to realize what it is and how big that tournament is and what it should be and what it can mean to the young people in our country.”
Earlier in the week Forget addressed the media to regrettably inform them that the plans for a roof at Roland Garros had been delayed until 2020. But even then he could not give a guarantee. "In other countries, things are quicker," Forget said. "So it's a question of time. I think that 2020 is the ultimate date that we have set for ourselves, we hope that everything will be finished.”
Monday’s rain (and perhaps tomorrow’s—the forecast is nearly as bleak for Tuesday) hasn’t been great for the tournament, the players or the fans. But it has given Forget a pedestal to stand on, a megaphone to reach the world, and willing ears to listen.
“So the time has come, I think, to say, No, we want the project to hatch,” Forget summarized “This is our objective. There are negative aspects, that's true, but they are so minimal compared to all the benefits, emotion given to many, many children and those who are sports lovers, millions and millions of people who want to watch these matches.”
Forget also spoke of the complexity of the plan, which calls for a major renovation and expansion of Court Philippe Chatrier so that it can support the weight of the roof, along with modernization and expansion of other areas of the site so that it might host a greater number of journalists and professional teams associated with players.
“It takes a lot of time,” Forget said. “In the end of the day, people must realize this project is extremely important. You are convinced, I am convinced, the president (of the French Tennis Federation) as well. But this is not enough. Some of the people who were against were very vocal about it. We were perhaps a bit too shy, as well.”
The rain may feel like a curse today, but if it plays a role in convincing the public of the project’s importance, then it might end up be a blessing for the tournament’s organizers.
Meanwhile, players and fans wait with baited breath as precipitation continues in Paris. Another washout on Tuesday will introduce a new level of panic among the tournament’s schedulers. Top seeds Novak Djokovic and Serena Williams have yet to play their fourth-round matches. Tuesday’s schedule features men’s round of 16 matches as well as men’s quarterfinals matches—an unprecedented coupling, and time is dwindling.
“It's a nightmare today, but for many, many years, we have always managed to overcome these uncertainties connected to the weather conditions,” Forget said. “We are very responsive, and we will find solutions.”