Tennis and Erectile Dysfunction? Time to Find Some New Advertisers!

I love to watch tennis. I do not tire of the sport and take interest in most any televised match - replay or classic, men or women, singles or doubles. The television coverage of this year’s clay court and grass court seasons has been sensational, particularly the coverage of the French Open and Wimbledon. With all day coverage I am now able to catch key moments of the Slams at work. We keep the tennis on all day long in one corner of our office and this allows me to dart over and take a peek at tiebreakers and key turning points in matches. Additionally, DirecTV has been showcasing play on 6 different channels during ESPN’s live coverage allowing me to choose what matches I want to see. I absolutely adore this feature as ESPN2’s main coverage often focuses on top Americans sometimes eschewing great matches between lesser known players. I get to choose! This is great use of technology and has vastly improved the tennis viewing experience. And the Tennis Channel’s primetime evening coverage is awesome! Not only do they show you the day’s best matches, they filter in additional stories of interest and interviews that make you feel like you are right at the tournament. Bill Macatee does an outstanding job and the interesting and insightful cast of experts Tennis Channel has assembled provides us with a unique snapshot of life inside the sport at the professional level. Unfortunately however, there is one part of the television coverage that I come to despise and that is the incessant Cialis commercials.

My daughters – 10 & 12 years - are not regular players but they like the game and they love to watch it on TV. They know as much or more about the top players and the sport as many adults. They will sit with me for hours taking in the Williams sisters and Andy Roddick and other favorites. I abhor the fact that they are being bombarded with commercials about erectile dysfunction! What are your options as a parent when the commercial comes on? Quickly mute the TV? Change the channel until it’s over? Perhaps you start talking to them in a loud voice or simply sit there in an awkward silence. Oh yes, I almost forgot, one option the parent has is to stop watching tennis completely, or at least forbid their children from watching.

Clearly the folks at Eli Lilly find tennis a coveted demographic however the networks showing these matches need to use some discretion about whether the commercials they are airing are appropriate for their viewing audience. I have to believe (and sincerely hope) that there are many children watching the Slams. TV shows are now required to have ratings that warn viewers of unsuitable content, perhaps its time to do the same for commercials.

Now I do understand that tennis and television are businesses and that now more than ever the networks need ad revenue. Even so, this is not an excuse for tarnishing the values of our sport in the eyes of the public. I cringe to think of how many families might tune in only for the slams and how the Cialis commercials impacted their viewing experience and their perception of tennis.

Lastly, I think our sport and its network of volunteers and associated organizations should stand up against Cialis and any other questionable product associations (think Virginia Slims). It is absolute hypocrisy to try and portray our sport as a wholesome, healthy, family activity on one hand and use the sports greatest events as a mouthpiece for discussing sexual activity on the other. It’s a highly inappropriate message for children and a total compromise of values. I truly hope we will see the commercial selections change in the near future because everything else with respect to tennis coverage has really excelled. Everyone within our industry believes wholeheartedly that there is not another sport on the planet that can hold a candle to tennis and what it has to offer so let’s put our money where our mouth is and look for some other, more suitable business partners that we are proud to have associated with this great game.

Richard Gasquet: Was Justice Served? Is This Best for Tennis?

I was relieved and pleased to see Richard Gasquet reinstated on the pro tour last week. Here is a situation where rules and policy cannot always be followed and the ITF thankfully allowed an independent tribunal to inject some reason into the proceeding so that in the end justice was done.

I fully support protecting the sport of tennis from the threat of drugs, gambling and other influences that tarnish outcomes. The use of any banned substance to increase your likelihood of winning is cheating, plain and simple. Cycling and baseball are two sports that have lost all credibility in my eyes for this very reason and I would hate to see that happen to tennis. But there is stark contrast between what happened to Richard Gasquet and the deliberate introduction of a banned substance to enhance your performance. Was he stupid? Perhaps. Should he have been more aware of the crowd, the people, the location? Definitely. But this is not cheating, it’s simply a mistake.

I do think that professional athletes need to be held to a stricter standard than the rest of us as they stand to benefit to a much greater degree. I also believe that they should be held accountable and punished for unsuitable behavior and actions on and off the court. It’s important to note that Gasquet has been punished by a strong measure already. His name was dragged through the mud, I am sure he has or will lose sponsors and he did not get to compete at the French or Wimbledon which cost him money and ranking points. This was a good punishment and a hard lesson for a young man to learn. Anything more than this however would have been just inhuman.

Pat Hanssen is Director of Sales for Lee Tennis Court Products



ARE YOU KIDDING ME! I have heard and seen a lot of things in my life, but nothing as ridiculous as Gasquet saying I ingested cocaine from kissing a girl. I can see it now, I'm going to walk into the office, be screened, test positive, and then explain to my boss that I kissed a girl on Saturday night in which I ingested cocaine. What do you think the odds are that I keep my job? The ITF has given themselves a black eye in my opinion. Testing positive is testing positive... Who cares what amounts are in the system? Oh and how about Gasquet's complaint that he was tested after he withdrew from Key Biscayne and only athletes in competition were to be tested. If you are clean you shouldn't care when you are tested.

The independent anti-doping tribunal that Gasquet convinced that he ingested cocaine should be drug tested themselves! Check this out, "We have found the player to be a person who is shy and reserved, honest and truthful, and a man of integrity and good character,'' the tribunal said in its ruling. "He is neither a cheat nor a user of drugs for recreational purposes.'' In the same statement they then said, "After deciding to withdraw from the tournament he went to a nightclub in Miami with friends to see a French DJ perform at a dance music festival, which the tribunal noted was "notoriously associated with use of illegal recreational drugs including cocaine.'' So my question is this, what is a person of integrity and good character, doing in a club that is "notoriously associated with the use of illegal recreational drugs including cocaine?"

We all have seen baseball take it share of criticism for the steroid scandal and now the ITF has open its doors as well. Nice job with keeping the integrity and good character of the game!

Tracy Lynch – Wholesale Accounts Manager, Lee Tennis Court Products