Our writer reports from court side.
Like many in Paris, I relished last week’s return of two of the most anticipated shows on earth: Top Gun: Maverick and Roland-Garros. Both events had waited a long time to properly open their doors to an eager public and were instant sell-outs. They were worth the wait. A little research produced an interesting connection, namely that although Roland-Garros is a household name, few people (including French tennis fans) are aware that Roland was not much of a tennis player. Instead, Garros was a risk-taking aviator and a fearless fighter pilot who constantly pushed conventional boundaries. It turns out that a hundred years ago, the celebrated Monsieur Garros was no less than France’s real-life Maverick.
There is certainly a breath of that unorthodox spirit in the Open tournament bearing his name. Roland-Garros (R-G) feels the odd one out among the quartet of Grand Slam tennis events, dominated by the ‘anglosphère’ of UK, USA and Australia. Latin culture is an instant point of difference. English may be creeping into R-G, but the tournament happens in the French language, meaning non-native officials need to call spectators to order as well as just call the scores. R-G fans naturally love a French winner, but have a firm affinity to Hispanic culture, starting with Rafa, the undisputed King of Clay. Mexican waves are commonplace, but the distinctive crowd call of “Olé!” is a sound unique to R-G.
For now, the non-use of Hawk-Eye technology also remains une exception française. Where machines are making some line judges redundant, R-G’s officials still have a role beyond the decorative, with the clay surface making it easier to mark the ball.
“The players’ designer towels are smeared with orange dust as slower surfaces make for long rallies and long matches”
R-G curates a distinct style which also sets it apart. R-G’s 2022 marketing slogan (in English) is ‘Move the lines, with style’. That style is somehow both sweaty and chic. The players’ designer towels are smeared with orange dust as slower surfaces make for long rallies and long matches. It’s a messy job to sweep and spray these clay courts (the top layer of terre battue is crushed house bricks), yet those who do it somehow manage to look elegant. Sponsored by Lacoste, the hundreds of officials and ramasseurs de balles look chic in shades of ochre matching the playing surface.
For the public too, the French Open is about ‘le look Roland Garros’. The newly upgraded stadium has even more shops selling white Panama hats and the annual designer T-shirt. Given Paris’s storied gastronomy, it is perhaps surprising that R-G is not really about the food and drink. Alcohol is not even permitted courtside, in keeping with a culture of ‘consommer avec modération’ and many fans save time and money by bringing their own jambon beurre and buying an ice cream at the grounds.
While R-G tickets are available to all members of France’s tennis clubs, the event also offers stylish corporate entertainment. For two sunny weeks in May, Paris’s commercial property network revels in spending quality time with the cream of French business. BNP Paribas has been a main R-G sponsor for decades and an invitation for Coquilles St Jacques and Meursault in their privatised Espace VIP is one of the golden tickets in my industry.
“The timing was uniquely unfortunate as all of that work was finally completed just in time for the full Covid lockdown of May 2020”
R-G’s recent €380m re-development is quite a real estate story itself. Ten years ago, the little plot of land in the wealthy 16th arrondissement was clearly too small to keep Paris on the world tennis stage. Rumours were leaked (as ever to galvanise the planning authorities) that Paris was about to either lose its treasured Slam to Madrid or watch it move outside of the city to Disneyland. Eventually, in 2018, after years of tough negotiations, the old R-G was demolished, extended, modernised and greened. The timing was uniquely unfortunate as all of that work was finally completed just in time for the full Covid lockdown of May 2020. The postponed tournament was played in October in front of empty and expensively renovated stands.
If 2020 proved that Paris’s spectators are definitely the soul of this event, 2021 was not much better. At last, in May 2022, without masks, restrictions or curfews, the soul of R-G has returned in a big way, with the new dimension of noisy night sessions. In uncertain times where pre-Covid rituals are gradually being restored, the return of full stadiums and cinemas feels like one of the last confirmations that Paris life has reset to a new normal.
