French Open director resigns, citing communication issues with tennis federation

French Open Director Guy Forget resigned from his position, citing communication issues with the new head of the French Tennis Federation (FFT), The Associated Press reported. 

The federation said in a statement Tuesday that Forget’s replacement will be announced soon. 

In an interview with French newspaper L’Equipe, Forget said the federation sent him an offer to renew his contract but he declined, citing divergences of views and poor dialogue with newly elected FFT President Gilles Moretton. 

“From the beginning of Gilles’ mandate, I felt that communication was not going well,” Forget told the French media outlet. “There was never any communication with him. And clearly, I felt that there was no trust.”

In a statement to L’Equipe, FFT thanked Forget for “his commitment and exemplary work, which have contributed to the influence of these two major tournaments on the international scene.”

This comes as Forget, who also stepped down as the director of the Paris Masters, was named in the Pandora Papers leaks by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists that highlighted how the rich have used offshore accounts to shield assets collectively worth trillions of dollars, according to the AP.

Forget added he doesn’t believe the Pandora Papers leaks made his rift with Moretton more noticeable. 

The federation ethics committee found no wrongdoing from Forget in the Pandora Papers leaks, saying he did not breach “values of honesty and integrity,” the AP reported. 

Forget, a former tennis player, had held the French Open director position since 2016, the AP noted.