Dubai: The planning for next year's edition of the Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships will commence soon after Saturday's men's final at the Dubai Tennis Stadium.
"There is very little time to be wasted. We have a wrap up party after the final and immediately after that the planning for the next tournament starts," Colm McLoughlin, Managing Director of Dubai Duty Free (DDF) told Gulf News.
Three years back, Dubai Duty Free - the owners and organisers of this annual event since 1993 - took over the management of the championship.
"Everything is now handled in-house - the logistics, the engineering, the seating, the stadium, the re-surfacing of the courts, the hotel rooms, the visas, the player activities and travel plans is all done by our own staff," McLoughlin stated.
"There are a few things like the television production and the security that is handed out, but besides that everything is handled entirely by staff from the Dubai Duty Free and that too so efficiently."
Improvement
Saturday's wrap-up party will be a gesture of appreciation to all involved in the successful running of yet another tournament.
Sunday there will be a de-briefing from all the main personnel along with a review of the reports submitted, among others, from the ATP Tour and the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour.
"The process for the next tournament literally gets under way from the day we finish this event. We are self-critical," stated Sinead Al Sibai, Manager, Events, Advertising and Media Co-ordination at DDF.
"A master report will be in with us within a few weeks and we will sit down and see the areas of improvement for the next one."
The core group consists of DDF staff headed by McLoughlin, tournament director Salah Tahlak, Al Sibai, Jasmin Micoyco, Christine Feliciano, Richie Burney and Ragu Nair.
"What I have been noticing about all people who have been involved with the running of the tournament is the enthusiasm and innovativeness that they have been showing over the years," said McLoughlin.
"These are the people who make this event possible. These are the people who contribute to the success of the championships."
And if the 'big' things are important, then there are the 'smaller' ones that are equally important and need taking care of.
"We need to know the speed of the court, the number of seats needed, the hotel accommodation for the players and guests, the requirements of the players and then some of them have special requirements as well," stated tournament director Salah Tahlak.
"We have to even pay attention to the type of food or the diet of the players."
The Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships clearly showcase everything that is great about sport and sport's management in the country.
