Spectator Hurt by Falling Advertising Board at Halle Open

HALLE, Germany — A female spectator was injured when a falling advertising board struck her during Alexander Zverev‘s match at the Halle grass-court tournament on Wednesday. The incident took place while Zverev was leading 5-2 in the first set against Marcos Giron.

According to tournament organizers, the board fell from the upper tier of the OWL Arena, hitting a 62-year-old woman from Halle. Zverev and umpire Renaud Lichtenstein quickly rushed to assist her with ice for her neck.

Organizers reported that the woman was able to leave the venue independently, holding an ice pack provided by Zverev. She was later taken to the hospital for precautionary checks but did not suffer any major injuries.

“Something like this has never happened in the 32-year history of our tournament. We deeply regret the incident,” said tournament director Ralf Weber in a statement.

Weber met with the spectator in the event’s medical center and offered her a free pass for the next year’s tournament. Event managers Dr. Udo Kleine and Uwe Greipel-Dominik suggested that loose screws may have caused the board to fall due to drumming by fans against the boards. They announced plans to check all other boards at the venue immediately after Zverev’s match.

Following the incident, Zverev went on to defeat Giron 6-2, 6-1 and is set to face Lorenzo Sonego in the Round of 16. Zverev expressed satisfaction with his performance, saying, “It was a great match from me. I thought it was quite a high level.”