French Open To Get Roof By 2011

Roland Garros, the venue for tennis’ French Open, has announced plans to extend
its facilities to include a new showcourt with a retractable roof by 2011.

The Grand Slam tournament, currently taking place this week, has been heavily
hit by rain with all but 14 matches on the opening two days of the 2007 event
affected by the bad weather.

‘The works could start in 2009,’ said French Open general director
Jean-Francois Vilotte.

‘The first few days of the tournament, with heavy showers, have demonstrated
the interest of having both a larger stadium and a centre court with a
retractable roof to limit scheduling problems. Ideally, the 2011 French Open
would take place on the extended venue.’

The French Tennis Federation (FFT) has been working on a plan to extend the
stadium for a number of years and the scheme was included as part of the Paris
bid to stage the 2012 Olympics.

However, the project has been hit by delays over environmental concerns and
Paris losing out to London in the bid to host the 2012 Games.