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| May 6, 2020 | by Carole Bouchard |
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The Rolex Shanghai Masters tournament director, Michael Luevano, back at work in his office since February, spoke to writer Carole Bouchard from the publication Tennis Majors about what options he is considering in order to make the event happen, as well as the obstacles in the way.
BOUCHARD: Michael Luevano, you've seen tennis suspended around the world. What does that mean for you as of now?
LUEVANO: For the Rolex Shanghai Masters: we're in a unique position. We're ideally positioned, I suppose, if the world were to get back to a semblance of normality. The real issue would be, I think, the travel restrictions that may be still in place leading into the tournament, which would certainly impact the ability for players to even access the China market, without potentially having to be in quarantine. We are exploring a number of different options and precautions but ultimately in this country, it won't be our decision: it will be the government's decision if they want to proceed with a large scale sporting event or even an event that is played behind closed doors.
BOUCHARD: Until when can you wait? Can you wait until the end of August, the start of September to say if you can proceed or not?
LUEVANO: Yes, I think probably the end of August or very early September, which would be pushing it. And of course, the ATP will also have their position. But ultimately, it will come down to the local government telling us we can stage, or we cannot stage the event. We're a large company and we do a number of other sports events, including Formula One, and show jumping, and athletics so a number of our properties have been pushed into the fall but without dates, so because it's so fluid, it changes from week to week. But we're optimistic. And our advantage, I suppose, is that we're a government entity, so if unfortunately, we couldn't stage an event this year, we'll certainly be ready for 2021 with little impact.
Read the full interview:
https://www.tennismajors.com/news/atp-tour-news/the-rolex-shanghai-masters-keeping-the-hope-alive-133187.html
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