'Modify facilities or move Australian Open': health and safety expert

The Australian Open shouldn't be held in January unless changes are made to Melbourne Park to protect players and fans from the searing heat, a health and safety expert has warned.

Players at the Australian
tennis open are suffering,
as are many spectators.

Players and spectators sweltered through 39-degree conditions at Melbourne Park, with 42 degrees the forecast for Friday.

Some clever kids took refuge in the water fountains at Garden Square to beat the heat. Outside courts with shade had spectators sitting out of the sun while courts with no shade were empty.

The crowd of 38,072 was down about 10,000 people on the two previous day-time totals.

Most players looked uncomfortable, but Frenchman Gael Monfils battled the most. He lost to Novak Djokovic on Rod Laver Arena where the on-court temperature was 69 degrees. 

He won the first set but then crumbled, virtually giving up in some points, to lose in four sets.

Read The Sydney Morning Herald story by Gene Efron and Anthony Colangelo - “'Modify facilities or move Australian Open': health and safety expert.”

'No reason to debate the issue any more'

Beneath the Wisteria supporter and climate change advocate, Terry Court,  had a letter published in today’s (January 20) Shepparton News.

Terry wrote:

There is no reason to debate the issue any more. The intensity and frequency of periods of extreme heat events, as experienced last week, can be attributed to human-induced climate change.

Last week every Victorian was adversely effected by extreme heat – some lost their lives. The business-as-usual approach at all levels of government, the vast majority of Australian businesses and Australians in general will not address this wretched problem.

We have to act now to create tangible renewable and sustainable enterprises. Spending $300 million creating two new air conditioned tennis arenas at Melbourne Park, so the elite can play in 45°C won’t solve the problem.