Guy Forget discloses problem with playing the French Open behind closed doors

The coronavirus, known as COVID-19 is known to spread rapidly in crowded locations and this has led to concerns regarding public health and safety.

The ATP suspended it's season for six weeks citing the safety of its players and fans, along with the steady increase in the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19. This also led to the cancellation of the BNP Paribas Open and the Miami Open Masters 1000 events, which were scheduled to occur over the next two weeks.

However, with no clear resolution in sight, this has also put the European clay-court season in jeopardy. The Rome and Madrid Masters 1000 tournaments also face the risk of being cancelled, with the French Open scheduled to begin on May 24.

Facing the prospect of canceling a Grand Slam tournament, many have posed the question of whether the event could be held without spectators. Roland Garros tournament director Guy Forget spoke with the French media to provide an update on the event.

"We will have to follow the recommendations from the French government and medical experts." said Forget. The French government recently banned all gatherings of more than 1000 people in an attempt to contain the outbreak.

"Inevitably, the tournaments scheduled for the coming weeks are all exposed. It would be a problem to organize Roland Garros behind closed doors." Forget elaborated. "Would it be economically viable ? By the time of Roland Garros, there is time left but at the same time things will move will happen quickly.

I think of the health of the players and spectators. We will explore all the possibilities, but, in any case, the decision will not be to the French Federation. We will follow the recommendations. The big unknown at the moment is how long it will last.”

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