Guest from Europe 1 on Sunday noon, the director of the Roland-Garros tournament, Guy Forget, welcomed the opening of a particular edition, despite the threat of the coronavirus epidemic and bad weather conditions. 

INTERVIEW

"Let the show begin", enthuses Guy Forget, director of Roland-Garros.

Despite the coronavirus epidemic, which has prompted its organizers to postpone the 2020 edition of the tournament, and the very rainy weather conditions which are announced for the next few days, the former French tennis player said he was "optimistic" on Sunday on Europe 1. "We are happy that the tournament is starting, it was so complicated," he breathes. 

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"Footballers play the championship all year round"

In the rain, the central court has already released its closed roof, a novelty of the season, on Sunday.

"We finally have this roof that we have been waiting for for years, which allows us to attend a very beautiful show", greets Guy Forget, who emphasizes that "for the Paris 2024 Games, the Suzanne Lenglen court will also be covered. ".

In the meantime, "the courts are covered" and the game can resume "as soon as the rain stops", assures the director. 

Asked about the bloodshed of Belarusian Victoria Azarenka, who pushed the referee to interrupt her match because of the cold, Sunday morning, Guy Forget cut short any controversy.

"Football players play the championship all year round, even in February, sometimes it's zero degrees and it's playing," he argues.

"Tennis players are able, even if it is unpleasant at times, to play for a few minutes in difficult conditions."

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"We had to support the tennis world"

"We will have a few good days in Paris, even if the thermometer is a little low," therefore wants to believe the tournament director.

"We are hopeful that it will come to an end (…) We had to save this Roland-Garros tournament anyway, no matter what, there are lots of players who have not been able to do their job for several months and we had to support the tennis world. "