Paris, Apr 8 (AP) The French Open tennis tournament will be delayed by one week because of the coronavirus pandemic, organizers said Thursday.

The clay-court Grand Slam tournament was set to start on May 23, but first-round matches will now get underway on May 30.

The French tennis federation said the decision was taken in order to maximize chances the event will be played “in front of as many spectators as possible" in a safe environment.

Last year's tournament had been pushed back to September because of the health crisis, with crowds limited to 1,000 per day. (AP)

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