Pandemic safety measures in place as Hong Kong’s top tennis players finally see some action
- Organisers satisfy health authorities with set of conditions including closed stadium at Victoria Park
- National championships take on greater significance after all top players denied opportunities overseas.
The Prudential Hong Kong National Championships, the domestic tennis flagship tournament, will kick off this weekend at Victoria Park with organisers following a set of strict coronavirus safety measures.
All leading players, such as Eudice Chong, Cody Wong Hong-yi, Yeung Pak-long and Kai Wai-yu, will appear at the two-week tournament, which was first scheduled in August but then postponed because of a new wave of the pandemic.
“The national championships always remain the biggest tournament for your players and it would be disappointing if we can’t have it this year,” said a spokesman for the Hong Kong Tennis Association, organisers of the event.
“After reviewing the situation since we announced the postponement in July, we have submitted a set of hygiene guidelines to ensure the event will take place under a safe environment and they were accepted by the authorities.
“The players have already been denied the opportunities of going to overseas tournaments this year because of the global pandemic and therefore the national championships will become their biggest target.”
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The guidelines require players and officials to wear a face mask while taking public transport to and from the venue, and only arrive close to their allotted match time and depart immediately afterwards.
There will be temperature checks when entering the stadium. Players will also need to submit a health declaration form. Except during matches, everyone must wear a mask to maintain a high level of personal hygiene and avoid close contact with any other person by keeping at least 1.5 metres apart.
To avoid body contact, players and officials are not required to shake hands before and after a match. The tournament office will provide sanitisers for cleaning players’ chairs and tables after each match, and players are advised not to share towels and water bottles. They should report to officials immediately if they feel sick during a match.
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The 3,600-seat Victoria Park centre court will also be closed during the tournament and no fans will be allowed. Players will not be allowed to stay in the spectator stand when not playing.
The men’s singles will feature 32 players, with Yeung and Kai leading the seeding, while Chong and Wong will be the favourites in the 16 women’s singles draw. At stake will be a total purse of HK$420,000, including the three doubles events. The two singles champions will walk away with HK$42,000.
Tennis tournaments in Hong Kong have been disrupted by the pandemic. Most notably, the annual Prudential Hong Kong Open was cancelled in September due to public health and safety concerns. Organisers said the WTA international series event would return in 2021.
