French Open: Fans, no Barty
Spectators will be allowed at the French Open this month despite the growing number of coronavirus cases in the country, organizers said Monday.
They unveiled the health protocols for the clay-court Grand Slam, which will take place at Roland Garros in western Paris from Sept. 27 after being postponed from its May start due to the pandemic.
Also Monday, world No. 1 and reigning French Open champ Ash Barty of Australia announced she wouldn’t be defending her title due to concerns over COVID-19 and lack of preparation time. Barty isn’t playing in the U.S. Open either.
Roland Garros will be divided into three zones based on the three main courts, with 5,000 people each for the Philippe Chatrier and Suzanne Lenglen courts. The zone surrounding the third biggest court will host a maximum of 1,500 spectators a day.
Wearing a mask will be mandatory, while all accredited people will have to pass virus tests to be admitted in the Roland Garros bubble.
All players will be tested upon their arrival in Paris.
They will be authorized to play if they return a negative test and will undergo a second test 72 hours later.
Players will then be tested every five days as long as they remain in the draw, and will have to stay in the two hotels booked by organizers.
French officials confirmed more than 30,000 deaths from COVID-19 while the number of new daily cases surpassed 8,000 on Friday.
College football: Oregon T Penei Sewell, the 2019 Outland Trophy winner and a unanimous first-team All-American selection, announced that he will opt out this season and prepare for the NFL draft. Sewell is considered a top-five pick by many draft experts. The Pac-12 postponed all athletic competition through the end of the calendar year due to concerns over the pandemic. ... Southern Mississippi fired Jay Hopson as coach just four days after the Golden Eagles lost to South Alabama 32-21 in their season opener. Hopson, who was in his fifth season, finished his tenure with a 28-23 record and led the program to three bowl games. Assistant Scotty Walden will serve as interim coach.
NHL: John Klingberg scored on the Stars’ first shot, Anton Khudobin stopped all 25 the Golden Knights put on net and the third-seeded Stars beat the top-seeded Knights 1-0 on Sunday night in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals in Edmonton, Alberta.
Soccer: Lionel Messi returned to training with Barcelona almost two weeks after he told the club he wanted to leave. Messi confirmed Friday that he would be back with Barca, which opens it La Liga season Sept. 27 against Villarreal. ... Paris Saint-Germain and France striker Kylian Mbappe tested positive for COVID-19. Mbappe, 21, will not play in France’s Nations League match against Croatia on Tuesday. Seven PSG players who have tested positive.