The Indian Wells Tennis Garden will make several improvements to Stadium 1, Chief Executive Office Raymond Moore announced on Sunday. Prior to the 2017 BNP Paribas Open, Stadium 1 will be upgrading, expanding and adding concessions, restrooms, and suites.
In an effort to continue enhancing the overall fan experience in the world’s second largest tennis stadium, concessions will be improved. Four premium walk-in concessions will be added to the main concourse to allow for the introduction of new food concepts and menus with more variety. Concessions will be created for the second suite level and the upper bowl. The current open patios at the perimeter of the suite level will become shaded, offering tables and chairs with great views of the Tennis Garden grounds.
All of the restrooms on the concourse and second level will be replaced, increasing both the quantity of facilities and integrating the design aspects of Stadium 2 restrooms. Restrooms will also be added to the upper bowl, where there previously was none.
The suites will be completely renovated. Additionally, the existing open air portion of the concourse level will be covered to allow the suites on the second level to be significantly expanded, and include private bathrooms, and larger food service and hospitality space.
“We continue to strive to enhance the overall experience at the BNP Paribas Open and Indian Wells Tennis Garden,” Moore explained. “Food and restrooms are two very important things that shape a fan’s overall perspective of an event, and we want to improve upon those areas in Stadium 1 to make them exceptional. In addition, for our fans in the suites, we believe it should be a premium experience, and our changes will reflect that.”
Adjacent to the concourse, a new private club venue will be added for the Indian Wells Tennis Garden members. It will include a shaded outdoor deck with great views of the practice courts and create a vantage point for watching tennis by club members. An expanded workout area will be added to this venue, which will be utilized by the players.
A new player services building will also be constructed. A two-story space, it will provide seamless access to areas such as the locker rooms and the players lounge. The player service building will also consolidate functions such as credentials, stringing, transportation, and laundry services for the players.
“It’s not as extensive (as the recent renovations to Stadium 2),” Moore concluded. “We have 44 suites. We looked at all the suites. Not all of them have bathrooms. We want to address that, which might mean instead of 44 we might end up with 34 suites. I don’t know. The architect is still looking at the drawings. We will increase the size of some suites and decrease the size of others. Like our big suites, the ones that are 3,000 square foot, we might subdivide those. We are looking at all those things right now.
“So the fans will see. They will notice the improvements we make. If you’re talking about painting and carpeting and new doors, we are going to do all those things for Stadium 1. It won’t reduce our capacity. I think capacity will remain the same or very close.”
of course, Raymond Moore probably won’t be around to see those improvements!
Incompetence at its finest.
Perfect timing what with both Williams sisters back at IW for the first time in over a decade.
Throw him out.
Omg. Less is Moore. They are all taking lessons from Trump. Open mouth and let it fly.
amazing scenes (and not in a good way)
Moore is an idiot. He probably thinks women should be quiet, barefoot and pregnant at all times. Until these old guys die off, we (women) will be stuck with this never ending antiquated thinking. He needs to go. I thought Serena handled it well, she was clam and concise. Much more than I would have been, this still irks the crap out of me! I wish I could say more, but I would be edited to the hilt!
“calm” Typo!
She was ‘clam’ as well as ‘calm’. She chose her words very, very carefully and cleverly avoided saying anything contentious or might be used against her. Clever girl.
What’s wrong with stating the obvious? As a woman, I would say Moore is right in saying:
“If I was a lady player, I would go down every night on my knees and thank God that Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal were born, because they have carried this sport. They really have.”
Because of the PC Brigade nothing will change. The men are hard done by getting the same money for slugging their guts out for over 5 hours on occasions compared to a 45 minutes blowout in many women’s matches.
This is a myopic view point probably festering as a result of the recency effect. Women’s tennis for a long time was as popular as mens-what with Graff, Seles, younger Venus and Serena, Henin, Navratilova, Evert, etc. There were plenty of stories. Just because it’s in a bit of down period now doesn’t mean you resort to bush league, sexist nonsense like that. It’s not as though the current crop of the men’s game is very interesting. Fed and Nadal don’t look like they’re going to be around for much longer. What will the ATP do then? Resort to “attactive” looking women to fill bums on seats? Pathetic.
Novak thinks men should be paid more. WTA hasnt been interesting in years.
Thus quoth the raven never-Moore ?
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/23/sports/tennis/raymond-moore-quits-tournament-post-over-his-remarks-on-women.html?_r=0
Surprising that Ellison had nothing to say about Moore’s asinine comments and that Moore was still presenting the trophies on Sunday.
On. the. same. page. hawk ?
But I’ll reserve my concerns about Ellison until there’s more evidence.
Tiggy gets it: (I too am interested in hearing Andy Murray’s take on this – who seems to be the only ATP player not stuck in the stone age)
“Who could have sat through Sunday’s finals at Indian Wells and not seen how much Serena Williams and Victoria Azarenka, with their games and their words, brought to the day? Who could have watched the tournament over its two weeks and not seen how much better it was with Serena in it, and how many fans came to see her play? What else did a young Ray Moore and his fellow pros fight for but that?”
http://www.tennis.com/pro-game/2016/03/unequal-say/57937/#.VvFQzvkwiUk
The BBC gets it:
‘Equal pay is as much a myth as it is a minefield’
“Djokovic, world number one in 2015, won three of the four Slams last year. He was victorious in 93.18% of his matches. His reward for that, in prize money alone, was £14.5m.
Serena Williams, world number one on the WTA Tour, also won three of the four Slams. She won 94.64% of her matches across the year. Her total prize money? £7.3m.”
“If there is an argument in tennis to be made about inequity, it should be as much about attitudes as cold cash – about why Serena’s dominance of the women’s game is frequently described as boring when Djokovic’s supremacy on the men’s tour is breathtaking; why a series of broken service games in men’s tennis is likely to be depicted as a thrilling, see-saw contest while in a women’s match it’s often blamed on mental flakiness or physical inability.
People watch women’s tennis for the contests and the characters, for the skill and the strategies, for the fact we are witnessing the best in their chosen field.
To claim that men should take an even larger proportion of a revenue pool they already dominate would be to denigrate so much of that.”
http://www.bbc.com/sport/tennis/35863208
Wow. Brilliantly argued piece from Tom Fordyce. He drives a tractor through the usual woolly thinking and knee jerk reactions that surround this subject.
That BBC link is required reading, imo.
As much as I like Novak’s tennis, I have been bored with him winning everything. Have been equally tired of Federer and Nadal winning everything and grew tired of the Serena and Venus dominating WTA. That’s not to put any of them down – I just like to see other’s winning. But I believe I’m in the minority.
Anyway, this especially:
“People watch women’s tennis for the contests and the characters, for the skill and the strategies, for the fact we are witnessing the best in their chosen field.
To claim that men should take an even larger proportion of a revenue pool they already dominate would be to denigrate so much of that.”
He’s done the ‘honourable’ thing and resigned. From what I’ve read he wasn’t give much choice in the matter.
Changeover Tennis gets it:
#TennisParadise, Lost: Thoughts on an Ugly Day in Indian Wells
“In fact, as Serena herself pointed out in response to Moore’s comments, the U.S. Open women’s final sold out well before the men’s final because spectators wanted to a chance to see history being made. Second, the relative popularity of the men’s and women’s tours fluctuates depending on the players involved — in 2005, the women’s Wimbledon final between Venus Williams and Lindsay Davenport attracted 1 million more viewers than Roger Federer’s defeat of Andy Roddick for the men’s title that year. Maybe I missed it, but I don’t recall any tournament directors offering to pay the WTA extra that year, or any other year where the women outdrew the men.”
“This isn’t the first time, or the second time, or even the third time that an ATP player has said something ignorant about his WTA colleagues. From Justin Gimelstob’s disgusting rant in 2008 to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga’s clueless theories on hormones, to Sergiy Stakhovsky’s homophobic comments last year, these ugly, prejudiced statements appear again and again. None of these players has faced any consequences or censure for these statements. Yet, if we changed the group being denigrated from women to a racial, religious or ethnic minority, it’s hard to imagine that any player who made these statements would continue to have a place in the sport.”
http://www.changeovertennis.com/tennisparadise-lost-in-indian-wells/
And this one from 2013…
“The New, Frustrating Lines of Battle in Tennis: ATP vs. WTA”
“When one of the top women beats an opponent, 6-0, 6-1, it’s an excuse to criticize the lack of depth in women’s tennis. When a top man beats an opponent 6-0, 6-1, it’s because he’s just an elite player.”
“When Petra Kvitova cries during a match, she’s a “tear-stained drama queen.” When Andy Murray cries after the 2012 Wimbledon final, it’s a “revelation,” showing his love for the sport.
When Serena Williams comes back and dominates the WTA Tour after a long injury absence, it’s an “indictment” of every other woman on the WTA Tour:”
When Nadal comes back and immediately reaches four finals, winning three of those, including his first Masters 1000 event on his worst surface after a long injury layoff, it’s good for tennis.
Serena Williams has a track record of outclassing everyone else on the WTA, but if she loses matches, it’s because of “hormones.” When a top man loses, it’s because he must be valiantly carrying an injury.”
http://www.changeovertennis.com/new-battle-tennis-wta-vs-atp/
I have not said much about this because I was trying to calm down enough to be able to express my thoughts in polite language. But this has really hit a nerve with me.
Women still are paid less for doing the same work as men in the states. I don’t think this is about political correctness at all. It’s about basis fairness and equality. The women put in the time, train and work to be the best they can be. The fact that they don’t okay five set matches should not relegate them to second class status.
I can’t believe that hormones were brought up. I believe that Novak said it in when he weighed in on this issue. Women still go out there and give it their best without regard to hormones, for heaven’s sake! How sexist and insulting to hear this even now.
I remember the first time I found out that I was being paid less for doing the same job as a man. I did not work less hours, have less attandance, put in less effort or had inferior work performance. I did my job and did it well. This was back in the early 1980’s and we still do not have equal pay for equal work in the states.
The comment about women going down on their knees in gratitude for the men’s game, is beyond offensive and inappropriate.
Even though this man has been forced to resign, the problem will not go away as long as this attitude still exists in the sport.
I am outraged by this and disappointed that women still do not get the respect they deserve.
NNY: You did well to sleep on it before commenting.
Your response is calm and measured. Well done ?
ed,
Thanks. I wanted to be able to express my thoughts coherently. I thought the issue was too important.
I remember early in my career when someone came up to me at work and said that I was taking a job away from men who had families to support. There was a lot of hostility back then. I was so shocked that I didn’t even know what to say.
Women have made progress, but attitudes have not changed.
When Fed was winning in the weak era, I thought it was very boring. That’s why I stopped watching men’s tennis. There have been times when women’s tennis was more competitive and appealing. Both men’s and women’s tennis have had their ups and downs over the years. There have been times when the women out sold the men and had better tv ratings. The rivalry with Rafa and Fed really ignited interest in the men’s game. Then we had Novak and Murray and others who made for compelling matches and great interest. The women’s game has at times been somewhat lacking in exciting matches and competitiveness, but I think I’m recent years it’s been great.
I just feel frustrated to see this still going on. Getting rid of one man will not fix the underlying problem, because there are others who feel the way he does,
Very important and well said, Nny. The Clarence Thomas/Anita Hill story and hearings were personal for me – a part of young my life was being played out on cable TV. Anita Hill may have lost her case but at the hospital where I was starting my young career, there were important changes which took place, and in a short time after, protected and supported young women who spoke out and stood up for their rights’.
But those rights’ are never ever etched in stone – it’s never over. It’s cyclical at best. And – worth fighting for through the ups and downs.
Can’t believe Clarence Thomas is still Chief Justice sitting there on the Supreme Court. Every time I hear his name, I cringe.
If Kyrgios were a woman I doubt the WTA, or the paying public, would tolerate his uncouth behaviour the way the ATP accept it.
Men are from Mars. Women from Venus.
Gosh, your truth makes me feel guilty, ed. It’s the age old double standard.
But I keep telling myself Nick will change…give him time…
The Moore clangers and entire anti-PC, anti-feminism outrage has been brought to life, as if the election year hadn’t done that already, and it’s spinning my head around. Thank goodness a long-time trusted voice on another internet blog gave me permission to quote her.
jane Says:
[name deleted], think of the very word “witchhunt” – from whence does it come? genocide of women who were thought to be witches? i think you’re mixing up two very different things: blacklisting was about racism and ideology – antisemitism and anticommunism in the context of the cold war.
fighting (or hoping) for equality isn’t the same. and it’s not like a bunch of people have been called before a committee and refused work, as [name deleted] correctly points out. *one CEO* was fired for his unacceptable comments, particularly given his high profile position, as Ben points out. that happens in the real, business world every day.
[you know what else still happens? rape as a tool or war, and honour killings. :'( sigh… truly re-think the antifeminism. it’s not about being PC; it’s about being human and treating all human beings equally. ]
March 22nd, 2016 at 12:42 pm
Those words, together with the resignation of Raymond Moore, (not because I think he’s evil, but because his voice and responses on the subject of women in sport is outdated and from a time long gone), has given me hope.
My response to Novak’s words: it was/is disappointing. I’m going to say he was a bit caught off guard and didn’t have time to contemplate what he was saying. Okay, that is one excuse I give for him. Another possibility is that he is from a certain “culture”. Lastly, he’s certainly not the only male or even female on the tour with a sexist or an uniformed, unconscious misogynist, slant. The pro-tour voices are relatively young and I give them more time.
We could discuss these issues forever. Like most women I was faced with male chauvinism throughout my career: I learnt at an early age how to exploit this to my advantage. All it takes is guile and charm to flatter their over inflated egos – much more effective than getting het up over political correctness. lol.
Andy Murray gets it (I knew I could count on Andy)…
“I think there should be equal pay, 100%, at all combined events. The timing of it [Moore’s remarks] was just so strange, right before a great women’s final, there were 16,000 people in the stadium waiting to see them play.”
“One of the things Novak said was that if women are selling more seats and tickets they should make more but at a tournament like this, for example, if Serena is playing on centre court and you have a men’s match with Stakhovsky playing, people are coming to watch Serena.
“The crowds are coming to watch the women as well. The whole thing just doesn’t stack up – it changes on a day-to‑day basis depending on the matches you get.
http://www.theguardian.com/sport/2016/mar/22/serena-williams-andy-murray-novak-djokovic-equal-pay-row-indian-wells?CMP=share_btn_tw
I love the way Andy speaks his mind. He doesn’t care a damn if he’s being PC or not. No pussyfooting around the issues for him.