Socially distanced media operations in tennis

In the context of media operations, the ‘new normal’ of COVID-19 social distancing restrictions poses some unique challenges. The Progress Tour Women’s Championships was one of the first professional tennis events to be held in the UK under these new conditions so we had to plan and adapt our media operations service to ensure we followed current guidelines whilst still achieving nationwide coverage for the event. We worked with a minimal BBC crew to gather pre-event player interviews, ensuring all involved remained 2 metres apart. A group image of 20+ players provided a challenge that we managed with our photographer, all players holding their arms horizontally to make sure they were spaced adequately and the photographer shooting from an elevated position. Our excellent relationship with the national tennis media came into play when arranging post-match interviews via What’s App and Zoom. We found by using a phone on a tripod for Zoom calls meant that your ‘media conference’ room becomes very mobile. These were just a few of the operational issues we overcame and will continue to adapt our services to meet the changing media landscape.