China to set up their first Roland Garros clay-court clubs

On June 6, representatives from the French Tennis Federation (FFT) and Nanchang municipal government of Jiangxi, China signed a cooperation agreement at Roland Garros, announcing that the first Roland Garros clay-court club in China will be established in Nanchang.

At the signing ceremony, Stephane Morel, Head of Marketing, Licensing & Retail , stated that there were very few clay courts in China whereas the French Open was famous for its clay courts. He said that negotiations were already underway and the FFT expected to build 10 clay-court clubs in China. 

In his opinion, this cooperation is not only about putting FFT logos in the club, but more about establishing a real connection. He said, “The French Tennis Federation expects to bring benefits to tennis enthusiasts in the surrounding area of the clay court clubs in China.”

It is understood that the cooperation between FFT and Nanchang are multi-faceted, including clay court and youth communication. The FFT will also introduce the FFTs exclusive coach training methods.

In the future, the FFT will bring more youth tournaments to China. An existing example of such events is the Roland Garros youth wild card event organized in Nanchang in April. “We hope that more people would get to experience the atmosphere of the French Open through the clay-court club in Nanchang.” Morel said.

There are already 11 indoor clay courts in operation in Nanchang. It is estimated there would be around 20 clay courts in the future to provide practice sites for youth training and tennis fans. 

Roland Garros clay court in Nanchang, Jiangxi

Source: Xinhua 

Proofread by Raymond Fitzpatrick