2023-04-21 17:16:28
P… 40 years! Roland-Garros will celebrate a happy (and sad) anniversary this year. Forty years ago, Yannick Noah was the last Frenchman to win a Grand Slam tournament in Paris, against Mats Wilander. An adventure that marked generations and the history of French sport. Since then, it’s been a bleak plain for French tennis.
The FFT has therefore decided to put the small dishes in the big ones to honor the former player, Davis Cup captain and still a singer. “Yannick’s victory in 1983 determined my whole life, breathes Amélie Mauresmo, who drew inspiration from this epic for her career, rich with two Grand Slams. I am quite moved to be director of Roland-Garros at the time of such an anniversary. »
The tournament has chosen to baptize the traditional charity day of the Saturday preceding the opening “Yannick Noah Day”. “It makes sense and seems obvious to us given his involvement with various associations (Editor’s note: including Fête le Mur) Mauresmo explains. The next day, when the curtain rises on the 2023 edition, a fresco will be unveiled in tribute to the many facets of the athlete and the artist.
“We will keep a few surprises but there will be something nice and it will really be worth coming,” slips Mauresmo. We can expect in particular to see the former protege of Patrice Hagelauer drop his shoes and take a microphone to set a musical atmosphere in the stadium. On the other hand, to find a successor to him, we will have to wait a little longer…
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