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3/2/09 11:55 PM | Johan Lindahl
British banking giant Barclays is prepared to stick with Dubai after controversy plagued the men's and women's events, which wrapped up last weekend with a victory by Novak Djokovic.
The women's event a week earlier was rocked by the visa exclusion of Israeli Shahar Peer by UAE officials, who later survived a worldwide firestorm of criticism and allowed Israeli doubles player Andy Ram in last week. He promptly lost in the first round and went on his way, his point apparently proven.
"We just concentrated on the tournament itself and tried to make the best of it," Barclays official Michael Miebach told The National newspaper in Abu Dhabi. "I think we saw significantly less discussion in the second half of the tournament so we are moving in the right direction.
"Those problems overshadowed the fact that the world's top-10 women came here to play. That was a spectacular success for the tournament and we are very excited about that."
Djokovic won the men's event after injury pullouts by Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, plus a token protest withdrawal by American title holder Andy Roddick, incensed over anti-Jewish sentiment in the Gulf Arab nation.
Barclays has completed the second year of a three-year contract with Dubai and the partnership is expected to to continue beyond its expiry in 2011.
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No surprise that Barclays is staying with the Dubai tourney as the UAE owns 32% of Barclays as of late 2009. See excerpt below (http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/investing-and-markets/article.html?in_ar ticle_id=469329&in_page_id=3)
"When [the British] Government was taking equity stakes to rescue the Royal Bank of Scotland and the Lloyds Banking Group, Barclays refused state help. Instead it went to an Abu Dhabi and Qatari consortium fronted by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Abu Dhabi royal. The consortium paid £7.3 billion for 32% share of Barclays."
bobbynorwich , 3/4/09 10:00 AM