MELBOURNE -- Bringing the world's best tennis players to Australia in the midst of a worsening pandemic was never going to be easy. But organizers of the Australian Open, the first major tennis tournament of the year, were determined to proceed. The outcome could yield valuable insights for organizers of sporting events around the world in the pandemic era.
After months of planning and negotiations, and with the backing of the state government in Victoria, the 2021 championship will start in Melbourne on Feb. 8. "If the Australian Open doesn't happen in Melbourne it will happen somewhere else," Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews, head of the state government, told reporters on Jan. 14.
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