A major setback has struck the french open 2020 even before the start of the qualifying event on monday.
French open roof falls.
Therefore night matches will be possible for the first time at the clay court grand slam.
A retractable roof is essential to prevent weather conditions from affecting play.
The iconic philippe chatrier court finally has a retractable roof installed and the floodlights are operational too.
The exclusive home of roland garros tennis delivering live scores schedules draws players news photos videos and the most complete coverage of the 2020 roland garros tournament.
A long rectangular panel fell from a commentary box terrace on to the crowd forcing the evacuation of two rows of seats at the upper end of court philippe chatrier at the french open on tuesday.
It consists of 11 trusses each weighing 330 metric tons.
The pandemic forced the shift of the french open at roland garros from may to late september making the completion of a new roof over philippe chatrier court the largest stadium at the paris.
The time required to close french open 2020 roof.
The retractable roof on philip chatrier takes around fifteen minutes to close and covers a surface area of 1 hectare.
The french open 2020 bubble has been affected by the coronavirus pandemic.
Each truss is divided into 7 sections measuring 15m long and 3m high.
The french open 2020 is about to begin in a week s time.
The french open is one of the most historic competitions in the world but the clay court venue has been brought bang up to date with the addition of a retractable roof.
Coco gauff falls in first round of fanless u s.
Roof panel falls on crowd at french open.
The exclusive home of roland garros tennis delivering live scores schedules draws players news photos videos and the most complete coverage of the 2020 roland garros tournament.
A minimum of four players returned positive coronavirus tests on the eve of the grand slam event.
In early february the french tennis federation proudly released a video to announce the roof was ready.
A few weeks later people were sheltering in place as the nation went into confinement.