Home Australia Revealed: The one-word gender announcement you missed that proves the Australian Open has gone woke

Revealed: The one-word gender announcement you missed that proves the Australian Open has gone woke

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The Australian Open uses gender-neutral terminology when welcoming players like Naomi Osaka (pictured) to the court.
  • Grand Slam has made subtle changes to player presentation
  • The tournament has been criticized in the past for being “too woke”

The Australian Open has been criticized in the past for being “too woke”, and a recent change in procedure at Melbourne Park is sure to upset many Grand Slam fans.

In 2023, the iconic tournament was criticized for creating a special “mob entry” price for the tournament’s First Nations Day.

Then, days later, organizers came under fire for doing nothing to celebrate Australia Day in order to avoid conflict over the national holiday that was under fire.

Player introductions now feature the announcer at Melbourne Park saying the gender-neutral “and his opponent” instead of “and his opponent” when the stars first take to the playing surface.

For example, after Nicolas Jarry was welcomed onto the court on Tuesday, the announcer said: “…and to your opponent this afternoon, could you please welcome, from Italy, Jannik Sinner?”

The awake presentation was more traditional at the last Australian Open.

The Australian Open uses gender-neutral terminology when welcoming players like Naomi Osaka (pictured) to the court.

The iconic Grand Slam has been criticized in recent years for being

The iconic Grand Slam has been criticized in recent years for being “too woke” (pictured, defending men’s singles champion Jannik Sinner)

It is unknown if there will be non-binary gender players at this year’s event.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Grand Slam organizers for comment on the presentations.

During last year’s tournament, Jordan Thompson criticized the Australian Open as “the most spectacular tournament ever” after the local star was left baffled by a new rule change that angered several players.

During his first-round match against compatriot Aleksandar Vukic, Thompson was preparing to serve with a 3-1 lead in the second set as fans continued to file onto Court 3.

The rules for the 2024 tournament appeared to be relaxed to allow spectators into stadiums between games, not just at field change, but that created problems because there is a shorter break between normal games compared to the gap in the game during a field change. .

As a result, Thompson was left standing and waiting for fans to find their seats, and after asking the referee to address the late fans, he was stunned to learn of the rule change.

‘Are you kidding me, seriously? “My God,” he said. “This is the most fun tournament ever.”

“It’s just not smart,” Thompson added as he concluded his service game, as the referee clarified the new rules.

Australian Open director Craig Tiley insisted no official changes had been made for the 2024 tournament.

“I think it’s very important to point out that there have been no changes to the rules,” he told Nine’s Today.

“Basically what we’ve said is we want fans to be in their seats when the game starts, that’s the expectation when entering the stadium and that’s always been the case and it hasn’t changed this year either.

“What we’ve done is try to get fans into their seats quicker because the worst situation you can have as a fan is when you’re waiting outside the stadium for three or five games, you could be waiting up to 30 minutes before you get in, and We don’t want that for the fans either.

“So we’re finding a way to get fans into their seats as quickly as possible and whatever seat you can find, you sit down when the play starts, that’s the expectation.”

“Fans know that when you come to watch tennis and you’re in your seat, the idea is not to interrupt the game.”

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