More than 900,000 fans flocked to the event at Melbourne Park over three weeks in January
31 January 2023 - 15:41
byHritika Sharma
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A general view of the quarterfinal singles match between Andrey Rublev and Novak Djokovic of Serbia at Melbourne Park on January 25 2023. Picture; Lintao Zhang/Getty Images
The Australian Open set a Grand Slam attendance record with more than 900,000 spectators visiting over three weeks, the organisers said on Tuesday, despite the absence of some big-name players and disruptions of the schedule due to rain.
A record 839,192 fans flocked to Melbourne Park from January 16-29 for the first tournament in two years free of Covid-19 restrictions, beating the previous mark of 812,174 set in January 2020.
The figures eclipse 2022’s attendance numbers at other Grand Slam main draws — 515,164 visited Wimbledon, 613,500 were at the French Open and 776,120 went to the US Open.
More than 60,000 watched the qualifying events in Melbourne, bringing the total up to 902,312.
The tournament, missing the retired Serena Williams, Roger Federer and last year’s home-grown champion Ash Barty, broke its single-day attendance mark with 94,854 fans visiting on January 21. The previous record was 93,709 set in 2020.
“It was reported that we didn’t have the greats anymore, that it was going to be terrible. But people just want to be entertained,” Tennis Australia CEO Craig Tiley told the Melbourne Age.
“They want to have some fun, and tennis is a great option for them, and it’s become a summer thing to do for Melburnians and for Australians and also for our guests from around the world.”
Tiley has set his sights on breaching the 1-million mark next year. “This year was the start of it,” Tiley said. “It’s going to be a three-week extravaganza.”
Novak Djokovic beat Stefanos Tsitsipas on Sunday to win his 10th Australian Open crown, drawing level with Rafa Nadal on 22 Majors, and reclaimed the world No 1 ranking. Aryna Sabalenka secured her first Grand Slam title with victory over Elena Rybakina on Saturday.
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
Australian Open sets Grand Slam attendance record
More than 900,000 fans flocked to the event at Melbourne Park over three weeks in January
The Australian Open set a Grand Slam attendance record with more than 900,000 spectators visiting over three weeks, the organisers said on Tuesday, despite the absence of some big-name players and disruptions of the schedule due to rain.
A record 839,192 fans flocked to Melbourne Park from January 16-29 for the first tournament in two years free of Covid-19 restrictions, beating the previous mark of 812,174 set in January 2020.
The figures eclipse 2022’s attendance numbers at other Grand Slam main draws — 515,164 visited Wimbledon, 613,500 were at the French Open and 776,120 went to the US Open.
More than 60,000 watched the qualifying events in Melbourne, bringing the total up to 902,312.
The tournament, missing the retired Serena Williams, Roger Federer and last year’s home-grown champion Ash Barty, broke its single-day attendance mark with 94,854 fans visiting on January 21. The previous record was 93,709 set in 2020.
“It was reported that we didn’t have the greats anymore, that it was going to be terrible. But people just want to be entertained,” Tennis Australia CEO Craig Tiley told the Melbourne Age.
“They want to have some fun, and tennis is a great option for them, and it’s become a summer thing to do for Melburnians and for Australians and also for our guests from around the world.”
Tiley has set his sights on breaching the 1-million mark next year. “This year was the start of it,” Tiley said. “It’s going to be a three-week extravaganza.”
Novak Djokovic beat Stefanos Tsitsipas on Sunday to win his 10th Australian Open crown, drawing level with Rafa Nadal on 22 Majors, and reclaimed the world No 1 ranking. Aryna Sabalenka secured her first Grand Slam title with victory over Elena Rybakina on Saturday.
Reuters
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