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dlarssonf
27 Jun 12 16:57
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Date Joined: 05 Mar 08
| Topic/replies: 11,612 | Blogger: dlarssonf's blog
Tennis.com

France's Gilles Simon, who was just elected to the ATP Player Council, tells French radio he's opposed to men and women tennis players receiving equal prize money considering the current climate.

"I think that men’s tennis is really ahead of women’s tennis at this stage," he said. "Once more, the men spent surely twice as much time on court as the women at the French Open. We often talk about salary equality. I don’t think it’s something that works in sport. I think we are the only sport that has parity with the women in terms of prize money. Meanwhile, men’s tennis remains more attractive than women’s tennis at this moment."

Simon also told L’Equipe he was upset that the ATP tour agreed to make the tournament in Rome a joint event with the women without consulting the players directly.

"The year before, the women, for their final, they had 20 spectators," he said. "And so, in that case, you save them, but when you want a practice court, there aren’t any left.”

When told of Simon's comments, Marion Bartoli told Le Figaro that "he needs to get up earlier."

American teenager Sloane Stephens reacted differently, saying she does not care what Simon says because he was mean to her when she was a kid at the Sunrise Challenger in Florida.

"He hit me with a ball when I was ball kid for the first time. He hit me right in my chest because he lost a point and set he turned around and slammed the ball and it hit me," Stephens told a small group of U.S. reporters. "Whatever he says, that means nothing to me. We had discussion about it on the court last year because he was trying to kick me off the practice court in Estoril and I'm like dude you don't have this court. His coach was nice and he asked me, 'Why don't you like him?' and I said because when I was 10 he hit me with the ball and he didn't even say sorry and kind of walked off. So I was like, 'I don't like him."
Simon added: “Am I going to incur the wrath of feminist organizations? I don’t care."

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Report DonNo1 • June 27, 2012 10:04 PM BST
Rather get them off the forum first
Report petr cech • June 27, 2012 10:07 PM BST
Lots of misandric women SEETHING on facebook Laugh
Report ;[p • June 27, 2012 10:12 PM BST
personally prefer to watch 3 sets of wta rather than 5 setter involving giles and his countless choking

chokers shouldnt get equal money i agree

muggers for life
Report ;[p • June 27, 2012 10:19 PM BST
tbh simon shouldnt be allowed to play 5 setters , its just blocking court and broadcast for 5 hours,hate when mugs playing 5 setters,does he call this work,french choking bastard? lolLaugh
Report petr cech • June 27, 2012 10:25 PM BST
it's quite funny reading some of the comments from the 2-weeks-a-year tennis "fans".  They say things like "never heard of Simon but I've heard of the Williams' sisters so why should he get paid more".

And my favourite: "come back when you are in the top 10 Simon" - no clue that he was already top 10 until he got injured and even beat Fed indoors at the Masters Cup.
Report Mike-lfc • June 27, 2012 11:09 PM BST
Change mens doubles to 3 sets and womens singles to 5 sets. There stops any scheduling issues that may occer.
Report edy • June 27, 2012 11:32 PM BST
The day Simon plays Tomic in front of a big crowd, the WTA will gain a lot fans for being the more exciting, albeit not technically better, product.

I like Simon, I like him taking on the much taller and stronger brutes on the ATP and he has for sure produced exciting matches in the past, but boy he does also have a very uncanny ability to turn in true snorefests.

Anyway, yes the ATP (or in this case the ITF by I think only selling bundled tv contracts and tickets) does subsidize the WTA and it's players. I think that's really cool and nice of the guys. Helping the weak and underprivileged is so....you know...what europe and the world should be about. An idea that first gained major public support during the french revolution, then got further established by the prussians in the following century, didn't it?

A really nice change of scenery in the normal do or die atmosphere of professional tennis and we as spectators should support the idea as much as possible. Otherwise the world will become ever so slighty a colder and darker place.

You know, it's like that really cool and awesome guy who works just a tiny bit harder to cover for his not so talented and fast co-worker, so they can both have a nice living. Awesome and cool dude has everything he needs in life and he's not a greedy or into desperately needing the newest car, watch, yacht to boast his confidence as being superior to others. He's all about love, peace and harmony.

Too bad Simon decided to not be the awesome and cool dude in this particular case.
Report MathewC • June 28, 2012 7:40 AM BST

Jun 27, 2012 -- 9:54PM, caramba wrote:


some of the facebook comments from the thinkprogress article:Men's tennis is "more attractive" than women's? Says who? Typical misogynist cowardice---let's see him go up against either of the Williams Sisters if he thinks a man's game is just so much better. I say..let him prove it. Play against one of the top ranked females of tennis and see who takes the game, then your opinion might carry some weight.We need these people to start betting on Betfair.


LOL!

Report aaronh • June 28, 2012 2:10 PM BST
au revoir Gilles you fecking mug Laugh
Report caramba • June 28, 2012 2:11 PM BST
Laugh
Report hunt3r • June 28, 2012 2:14 PM BST
Gilles is right but bad attitudeLaugh
Report caramba • June 28, 2012 2:19 PM BST
Wimbledon 2012 earnings:

Gilles Simon £23,125
Sloane Stephens £38,875 (and possibly more)

Gilles must be SEETHING
Report aaronh • June 28, 2012 2:21 PM BST
LaughLaughLaughLaugh
Report aaronh • June 28, 2012 2:21 PM BST
Gilles 103 minutes today
Woz 192 minutes yday
Report aaronh • June 28, 2012 3:30 PM BST
Masha - "I think more people watch my matches than his (Simon)'

Laugh
Report DonNo1 • June 28, 2012 5:31 PM BST
They do and she earns more accordingly.  Gilles should do one of her photo shoots and see if she's up for equal pay then?
Report jsimpson67. • June 28, 2012 5:33 PM BST
hear hear
Report jsimpson67. • June 30, 2012 2:25 PM BST
ttt

golden set

ttt

ShockedShockedShocked
Report aaronh • June 30, 2012 2:31 PM BST
Laugh
Report aaronh • July 4, 2012 2:44 PM BST
Mens quarter finals - two 3 set beatdowns and probably one more to come with Tsonga

Womens quarter finals - 2 3 setters and two very close 2 setters

Cry
Report DonNo1 • July 4, 2012 2:51 PM BST
And yet the Mens games still far more entertaining and attracting more viewers
Report shiraz • July 4, 2012 2:52 PM BST
caramba  27 Jun 12 21:54
some of the facebook comments from the thinkprogress article:

Men's tennis is "more attractive" than women's? Says who? Typical misogynist cowardice---let's see him go up against either of the Williams Sisters if he thinks a man's game is just so much better.

I say..let him prove it. Play against one of the top ranked females of tennis and see who takes the game, then your opinion might carry some weight.

We need these people to start betting on Betfair.



Yes caramba, they would be pretty surprised to see Simon start at 1.01 for the first time ever.
Report aaronh • July 4, 2012 2:53 PM BST

Jul 4, 2012 -- 2:51PM, DonNo1 wrote:


And yet the Mens games still far more entertaining and attracting more viewers


nothing entertaining about today's matches..

Report alun2005 • July 4, 2012 2:55 PM BST
There's only ONE media man who can get this equal pay debate sorted once and for all. Sadly the puppy concerned only has eyes for his master Andy this week. I'm sure he's had his head patted today and given a special doggy chic for another informative interview.
Report incaseof • July 4, 2012 2:56 PM BST
If you like tennis, it's very entertaining.
If you like UE moonballing drama, it's not.
Report aaronh • July 4, 2012 2:56 PM BST
If these quarter finals on now were WTA ones, the WTA would be getting slaughtered but I guess it's okay for the men Confused
Report Java • July 4, 2012 2:58 PM BST
Nope.  Youzhny and Mayer have been utterly pathetic today.  Nothing more boring than a 3 set anihilation.  FFS Youzhny has disgraced the scene of a GS quarter final 6-1, 6-2, 6-1.

Utterly spineless.
Report incaseof • July 4, 2012 3:01 PM BST
Not watching much of WTA but Serenas first set yesterday and Azarenka vs Ivanovic was the best and most entertaining I've seen in WTA. Very one-sided but actually decent tennis.
Report alun2005 • July 4, 2012 3:01 PM BST
Colonel Youzhny has just saved 3 MPs against the GOAT. If that's not raw courage and heroism when your back is to the wall, what is?
Report DonNo1 • July 4, 2012 3:03 PM BST
aaronh     Joined: 18 Sep 09
Replies: 37647 04 Jul 12 14:56 
If these quarter finals on now were WTA ones, the WTA would be getting slaughtered but I guess it's okay for the men

--------------------------------------

Please point me to a WTA match where a player has ever hit at the intensity and verocity with which Fed and Djok hit.

Why don't you just go down your local park and watch two kids moonballing it too each other in a tight 3 setter if competitiveness is the main judge of how good a match is
Report incaseof • July 4, 2012 3:04 PM BST
Laugh
Report aaronh • July 4, 2012 3:05 PM BST
oh no, they hit it harder LaughLaughLaugh

I haven't seen any moonballing this tournament also, HTH
Report DonNo1 • July 4, 2012 3:07 PM BST
Funnily enough harder is a factor, not to mention the spin they incorporate.

Take it you enjoy sprinters who run the 100m in 15 seconds as much as Bolt in sub 10 Laugh
Report Java • July 4, 2012 3:08 PM BST
Mayer pulled out all the stops there when the pressure was on.  4-4 in the third = broken to love.  Laugh
Report Java • July 4, 2012 3:09 PM BST
And competetiveness is part of the product to sell to the public I'm afraid.  These quarter finals have been UTTER gash.
Report aaronh • July 4, 2012 3:10 PM BST
men hitting it hard = omg look at the power Shocked
women hitting it hard = ballbashing mug

how can competitiveness not be a judge of how good a match is ffs?
Report DonNo1 • July 4, 2012 3:12 PM BST
Give people the option of watching that Fed match or the Lisicki one from yesterday after the match and the majority of people would still say Federer
Report aaronh • July 4, 2012 3:13 PM BST
this Fed match has been incredibly boring
Report Java • July 4, 2012 3:13 PM BST
Of course it is.  The Premier League understand that in football as all clubs get an equal split of image rights.
Report alun2005 • July 4, 2012 3:13 PM BST
Lisicki's thighs admittedly require her match to be recorded though, for later in-depth research and study.
Report Java • July 4, 2012 3:14 PM BST
"Give people the option of watching that Fed match or the Lisicki one from yesterday after the match and the majority of people would still say Federer"

Are you serious? Of course they'd watch the Lisicki match if you told them the set scores in advance.
Report DonNo1 • July 4, 2012 3:14 PM BST
Because competitiveness says absolutely nothing about the quality of the match.  Youzhny was poor but Fed just played some quality tennis, tennis which if you are a tennis fan you can't help but enjoy and appreciate. 

Was Isner - Mahut a good match because it was so competitive?
Report Java • July 4, 2012 3:15 PM BST
Eh?  Isner v Mahut was awesome!?
Report aaronh • July 4, 2012 3:15 PM BST
the novelty wore off after about 20-20
Report DonNo1 • July 4, 2012 3:16 PM BST
Awesome? Laugh The 5 set was absolute dross, time to switch off the tennis and put on neighbours for you
Report DonNo1 • July 4, 2012 3:18 PM BST
I hate Nadal but i'd rather watch him in a 3-0 thrashing in the early rounds of RG than two average ATP players slugging it out in a 5 setter of average quality
Report Java • July 4, 2012 3:21 PM BST
I bet you love watching Barcelona winning 6-0 as well.

Would you rather watch Spurs v Liverpool and Man City at home to Wolves?  Obviously Man City are better than Spurs and Liverpool so I assume you want to watch Man City?  Laugh

Do you understand the appeal of sport is COMPETITION?
Report DonNo1 • July 4, 2012 3:27 PM BST
I do actually, Barcelona play the best football in the world.  Ever wondered why they are on Saturday/Sunday evenings every week and don't play when the lower down teams do typically?

Spurs Liverpool would be like watching Tsonga Berdych compared to Djok-Lopez, so the 1st.

Djok - Lopez or some non league football? Djok-Lopez obviously
Report aaronh • July 4, 2012 3:28 PM BST
Wolves would be more like Donald Young I think
Report DonNo1 • July 4, 2012 3:31 PM BST
'Do you understand the appeal of sport is COMPETITION?'


Part of it is, absolute quality is a bigger appeal
Report aaronh • July 4, 2012 3:32 PM BST
I would rather watch this Murray match now than either of the 2 already been on
Report aaronh • July 4, 2012 3:35 PM BST
is this like Arsenal vs Spurs or something on now Laugh
Report asparagus • July 4, 2012 3:38 PM BST
Tennis and sport in general is effectively the entertainment business. Therefore pay shouldn't be decided on the amount of time spent on a court but on what people are prepared to pay for the product. Therefore I've no issue with women getting equal pay for best of 3 sets rather than best of 5.

However, for women to deserve equal pay they clearly should attract the same amount of spectators/viewers etc. If the womens and mens tournaments were held separately the courts would be empty for so many of the women's matches. The men's tournament would continue to get full houses. You've only got to compare what tickets are going for on viagogo for the men's semi's and final compared to women's semi's and final to see where the demand is.

Interestingly i also noticed that the same seats bought through official channels cost more on men's quarter finals day than they do on women's quarter finals day which shows that even Wimbledon itself is well aware that men's tennis is much more popular.

Let's face it, equal pay for mae and female players is a total nonsense but in the days of political correctness gone mad it's unlikely to change.
Report Java • July 4, 2012 3:55 PM BST
"I do actually, Barcelona play the best football in the world.  Ever wondered why they are on Saturday/Sunday evenings every week and don't play when the lower down teams do typically?"

Don't be silly.  If Barcelona played long ball and game 4th in La Liga they would still be on primetime due to their global fanbase.
Report DonNo1 • July 4, 2012 4:09 PM BST
How do you think they built such a global fanbase and continue to maintain it Plain
Report alun2005 • July 4, 2012 4:39 PM BST
Dunno. Sending out lots of emails and leaflets in the newspapers?
Report DonNo1 • July 4, 2012 4:44 PM BST
Perhaps Stoke should do that and watch their fanbase explode Plain
Report aaronh • July 5, 2012 6:30 PM BST
Just out of interest, do people think women's money should be decreased, or men's increased ConfusedConfused
Report jsimpson67. • July 5, 2012 8:02 PM BST
'even though it was womens semi final day, all the talk and focus today was on the mens semis and andy murray tomorrow' (Inverdale, 2012) Shocked
Report Smiley1979 • July 5, 2012 8:46 PM BST
Surely the real question here is should womens tennis and womens sport in general even exist? Why is a woman earning millions to run 100M 3/4 of a second slower than the 100th best man?? Why is a woman tennis player earning millions to play tennis infinately worse than the 1000th best man?? Its purely because she is a woman and they are actually telling us its a handicap

Also the levels of fitness of a Matt Le Tissier or even a Federer never mind a Phil Taylor surely aren't beyond a woman. Why arent we segregating on fat or short or even a white 100M where they earn the same as their quicker black rivals??
Report ;[p • July 5, 2012 9:07 PM BST
i like watch women competing , not only because of proverbial  tits

but the softness ,delicacy,subtlety of women its quite nice to watch,totally different proposition than watching men

t
hats why women sport exist and doing quite well
Report ;[p • July 5, 2012 9:14 PM BST
aaronh

Just out of interest, do people think women's money should be decreased, or men's increased


they want to shift money from women to men within same lot 


question is for me,as nobody want o watch simon and other  mugs maybe better to divide money between entertainers and dull mofos,as i am concerned right know its EQUAL

maybe in the future simon will have to fight for his equality over nadal sharapova fedex or raonic  like a woman,no Confused Laugh
Report aaronh • July 5, 2012 10:51 PM BST

Jul 5, 2012 -- 8:46PM, Smiley1979 wrote:


Surely the real question here is should womens tennis and womens sport in general even exist? Why is a woman earning millions to run 100M 3/4 of a second slower than the 100th best man?? Why is a woman tennis player earning millions to play tennis infinately worse than the 1000th best man?? Its purely because she is a woman and they are actually telling us its a handicapAlso the levels of fitness of a Matt Le Tissier or even a Federer never mind a Phil Taylor surely aren't beyond a woman. Why arent we segregating on fat or short or even a white 100M where they earn the same as their quicker black rivals??


thinly veiled "i hate women post"

Report Howler78 • July 5, 2012 10:52 PM BST
When I hear this argument it's always people saying the women should play best of 5 if they want the same cash. At the slams though the men playing 5 sets is the main contributor to making their games less interesting and it always seems like the women are getting more TV coverage in the early rounds, because as least if it is one sided it'll be over quick.

You'd have to be the biggest Federer fan ever to really want to watch a procession against Ramos and similar matches involving Djokovic. Best of 3 should be fine until maybe round 4 then, best of 5 sets therein. Yes, you'd get some different winners, but why does that matter? By that token you might as well play best of 7 to give the favourite even more chance to progress. It's already made easy enough for the big guns to progress with the 32 seeds system. The fact that the men have to play best of 5 even in the final qualifying round when hardly anyone is watching is ridiculous and no tie break decider in any of the 3 qualifying rounds. The Roddick v Federer final 3 years ago was boring, long duration doesn't necessary mean good, it needed a final set breaker separately!

I enjoy watching the masters events more than the slams I think, to watch a mens best of five you can be devoting half a day to it. I wouldn't mind having 5 sets back for a few of the masters finals like Miami, Indian Wells and London, if the ATP trimmed down the slams to best of 3 for the first few rounds you could do this, would give better value for those buying final tickets.

Remember the women aren't getting equal cash all year, it's only for the four main events!
Report Howler78 • July 5, 2012 11:11 PM BST
I think they do actually get the same for WTA events that are at the same venues as the ATP masters events, but generally you can see the top women are making a lot less still
Report ;[p • July 5, 2012 11:12 PM BST
good point about those 3 setters  i like masters too



and what about doubles best of fiveCrazyCrazyCrazy

totally ridiculous, macca made good point today that top players would like to play some doubles but this format its just off putting
Report edy • July 5, 2012 11:19 PM BST
I don't see the top players going far  in doubles or even playing to begin with at the other majors. All except Wimbledon are best of 3 with final set tiebreak in doubles.
Report edy • July 5, 2012 11:25 PM BST
So best of 5, no tie break is hardly to blame for missing top players in the doubles draw.
Report ;[p • July 5, 2012 11:51 PM BST
i think actually wimbledon doubles would be most  popular for top players  of all slams regarded as a competitive training session of serving volleying  etc, due to nature of grass event where season is very short and grass practice is needed for players. playing on grass is probably most pleasurable as its soft nice must feel relaxing if u have no pressure to win, just hit some serves play some voleys on the net without much running
nice

only if matches would be short i think
Report aston • July 6, 2012 12:01 AM BST
Why not make the matches longer in the final when there is only 1 match for spectators to watch and the players dont have to save their energy for the next match? Best of 5 womens and best of 7 mens with tie break in final set
Report edy • July 6, 2012 12:09 AM BST
yeah maybe ;[p. This year it could've been slightly more popular to get some olympic doubles training in, but in other years I still don't see a lot of top20 players signing up for doubles at Wimbledon. Even if it's best of 3.

Aston....are you kidding me? Best of 7 for matches that are likely to have at least one of Nadal or Djokovic? Wimbledon is not allowed to play long past 11pm.
Report judorick • July 6, 2012 12:11 AM BST
best of 7? ffs, Djoko-Nadal could be on court for 8 hours
Report aaronh • July 6, 2012 12:11 AM BST
best of 5 doubles is ridiculous anyway, if they have to then it should be no advantage
Report ;[p • July 6, 2012 12:18 AM BST
murray playing with jamie... tsonga and monfils... ehh daydreaming

i think maybe nadal or djok wouldnt play but much more players from around 30
Report Dragon32 • July 7, 2012 2:35 PM BST
Yep, women deserve the same prize money as men and i'm sure all the fans watching today agree they are getting good value for their money  Laugh
Report jsimpson67. • July 7, 2012 2:36 PM BST
AngryBlush
Report leefee • July 7, 2012 2:41 PM BST
Wonder how much those poor saps paid to watch this utter pile of used tampons....
Report Has this ever happened before? • July 7, 2012 2:42 PM BST
120 i think

i reckon my 110 yesterday was better value for money
Report jsimpson67. • July 7, 2012 2:42 PM BST
they have jonny marray to look forward to at least
Report Has this ever happened before? • July 7, 2012 2:43 PM BST
they won't give a damn about him

the centre court crowd is simply a disgrace
Report jsimpson67. • July 7, 2012 2:46 PM BST
Surprised
Report aaronh • July 7, 2012 2:47 PM BST
Sad
Report Has this ever happened before? • July 7, 2012 2:48 PM BST
we were about the only people trying to create an atmosphere in our secion yesterday

most of them looked like they were attending a wake

why bother going to the tennis if you're totally uninterested Plain

if they swapped them for those on the hill it would have been immense
Report jsimpson67. • July 7, 2012 2:50 PM BST
very true. the atmosphere on tv seemed pretty poor. better for the 1st semi
Report jsimpson67. • July 7, 2012 2:53 PM BST
i remember around 5/6 years ago when i went to wimbledon federer was playing ferrero, great match

people sitting around were asking each other, 'which one's federer again'

Laugh
Report Has this ever happened before? • July 7, 2012 2:54 PM BST
yeah federer more popular with the old duffers than murray

was amazed by the lack of passion from the crowd at key moments in the murray match

he was closing in on history ffs
Report jsimpson67. • July 7, 2012 2:55 PM BST
it's not like the tiger tim days
Report Has this ever happened before? • July 7, 2012 2:58 PM BST
were they that supportive in the semis?

goran was the only close one wasn't it?

at least the quarters let some riff raff in who make some noise
Report jsimpson67. • July 7, 2012 3:01 PM BST
i think it was 04 when they last played on middle sunday there

obviously no tickets were pre-sold and was first come first serve so the atmosphere for phillipousis henman was incredible.. proper tennis fans
Report Has this ever happened before? • July 7, 2012 3:07 PM BST
yeah i went on middle sunday before that when he played arazi and was great

olympics should be good at least

got quarters tickets on centre Grin
Report HansUlrichApfelStrudel • July 7, 2012 3:11 PM BST
It is not equal pay at all at the moment - Serena will pick up more cash today when he plays the doubles later today.

For her two matches today she is odds on to spend less time on Court than the Men' singles winner tomorrow Crazy
Report HansUlrichApfelStrudel • July 7, 2012 3:11 PM BST
It is not equal pay at all at the moment - Serena will pick up more cash today when he plays the doubles later today.

For her two matches today she is odds on to spend less time on Court than the Men' singles winner tomorrow Crazy
Report stu • July 7, 2012 3:12 PM BST
Don't you just hate tennis crowds sometimes - Serena served a fault and the crowd made more noise laughing about some presumably hilarious incident with the served ball (off camera) than they had done all game, while Serena is trying to ready her 2nd serve...Cry
Report Has this ever happened before? • July 7, 2012 3:14 PM BST
yeah they were laughing at the ball going near a line judge yesterday Plain

i won't deny wanting to have a machine gun in my hands at that moment
Report jsimpson67. • July 7, 2012 3:15 PM BST
yeah the sense of humour is ermm, interesting, and very english Plain
Report northanlite • July 7, 2012 3:31 PM BST
it's a fekkin outrage.
can we not just have this pish moved to eastbourne.
Report aaronh • July 7, 2012 3:47 PM BST
ttt Plain
Report canaryboy • August 3, 2012 6:06 PM BST
another equal pay shambles at the olympics then

only answer is to deduct money from serena
Report aaronh • August 3, 2012 6:23 PM BST
no prize money retard
Report canaryboy • August 3, 2012 6:27 PM BST
hence my 2nd line

who's the retard? Laugh
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