Wimbledon 2015: Friday's play delayed to mark minute's silence in memory of Tunisia attack victims
Organisers of the Championships have decided to delay the start of play by 45 minutes so the mark of respect can be observed at noon
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Your support makes all the difference.The start of play will be delayed at Wimbledon on 2 July with players and fans being asked to observe the national minute’s silence in memory of the victims of the Tunisia beach massacre.
Matches scheduled for the outside courts usually begin at 11.30am, but the organisers of the Championships have decided to delay the start of play by 45 minutes so the mark of respect can be observed at noon.
Richard Lewis, chief executive of the All England Club, said: “Wimbledon will be joining the national minute’s silence on Friday and we will be asking all those in the grounds at the time to observe the silence out of respect to the victims in Tunisia and their families.”
Another minute’s silence is likely to be held next Tuesday at noon to mark the 10-year anniversary of the 7/7 London terrorist bombings. This would be the first time that play has been delayed twice in one tournament due to marks of respect.
Delaying the start of play by 45 minutes could lead to more matches rolling over onto the following day as the light fades. But Andy Murray’s mother Judy said the players would be “totally supportive” of the decision.
“It won’t matter to the players what time the matches start, because all tournaments are different. Some tournaments don’t start til five o’clock in the evening. It doesn’t matter if it starts at 11 or 12, I think it’s a great idea to show support for what’s happened,” she added.
In 2006, play was delayed until 12.05pm so a two minute silence for the first anniversary of 7/7 could be observed.
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