OpinionBeware wolf at the HKTA door
Officials must keep control of the city's WTA event, rather than subcontracting the work to private interests
The BNP Paribas Showdown in March featured two legends - John McEnroe and Ivan Lendl - as well as Caroline Wozniacki and Agnieszka Radwanska for a night of exhibition showmanship. Organisers promised this was the first of an annual event to mark the International Tennis Federation's World Tennis Day.
But it now emerges it is not as simple as just turning up for a one-night stand. There is a real "showdown" taking place behind the scenes, one which would put all the made-up histrionics of McEnroe and company in the shade, and has cast doubt over the future of this event.
The fight is between the local governing body, the Hong Kong Tennis Association, and the event organiser, Star Games, an overseas-based entity run by chief executive Jerry Solomon, who is the mastermind behind World Tennis Day.
It started over a sanction fee that the HKTA has requested - HK$1 million to HK$1.5 million - which would bring much-needed funds for the development of the game. Is it a fair request? That depends on which side of the court you are on.
The HKTA believes it should be recompensed for all the behind-the-scenes help, plus providing the ball boys and even a scoreboard for the inaugural event. The request came after the HKTA learned that World Tennis Day was really an initiative of Solomon, who apparently pays the ITF a fee.
"We initially thought this was an ITF event and that is why we readily chipped in and helped them [Star Games]. But now it transpires this is an event which they are profiting from and as such we felt it was only reasonable that we, too, get something from it which will help the game in Hong Kong," says Herbert Chow Siu-lung, a member of the HKTA executive council.
This request has incensed Solomon, who has accused the HKTA of "grandstanding" and demanding "an arbitrarily priced sanction fee". He has stated he is not going to be bullied by the HKTA.