The International Tennis Hall of Fame Class of 2020 Induction Ceremony and the Hall of Fame Open, the annual ATP Tour tournament in Newport, will not take place this July as a result of COVID-19.
The Induction Ceremony and festivities for Class of 2020 inductees Conchita Martínez and Goran Ivanišević had been scheduled for July 18. Martínez and Ivanišević will now be honored in July 2021, alongside any new inductees elected for the Class of 2021.
The 2020 Hall of Fame Open, an ATP Tour event which was to be played July 11 – 18, 2020, is cancelled.
The International Tennis Hall of Fame will contact all ticket holders directly via email to reconcile their ticket purchases.
The State of Rhode Island announced in late April that large public events would not be permitted in the state this summer. As the Hall of Fame Open is not a stand-alone event, but part of a global tennis tour, formal announcement of the tournament’s cancellation was pending the ATP Tour’s consideration of all world wide calendar implications and solutions. Today, the ATP announced a further suspension of the ATP Tour through July 31, 2020.
“While we will miss the annual traditions of Enshrinement Weekend and the Hall of Fame Open this year, the health and safety of all those involved and our local community is the priority,” stated Todd Martin, International Tennis Hall of Fame CEO. “We are looking forward to providing Conchita Martínez and Goran Ivanišević the celebration they deserve in becoming Hall of Famers and bringing the best of professional tennis back to Newport next summer.”
Martínez commented, “I am already looking forward to July 2021 in Newport. Moving the festivities to next year is the right decision for everyone. We can all hope the world will be in a better place by then and there will be much to celebrate.”
Ivanišević stated, “Finding out that I was going to be inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame was already a huge joy and honor for me this year. I will gladly wait until next year for the actual celebration so we can all focus on what matters right now, which is of course, health.”
