LONDON -- If there is one thing that can be said assuredly about Maria Sharapova, it is that she frequently finds herself the centre of attention.
The Russian only returned last month after a 15-month ban due to a doping violation but, ever since her comeback in Stuttgart, she has been the subject of a will-they, won't-they wild card debate about her entry into the next two majors.
The French Open takes its place in the circus by announcing its decision on whether to grant her a place on Facebook Live on May 16 but Wimbledon officials insist that their tournament is too big to be hijacked by the Sharapova show.
They are confident that, whatever issues the 30-year-old has during the tournament weeks, only excellence on court -- should she be there -- will get her top billing during The Championships.
"It's quite easy," said All England Club chief executive Richard Lewis when asked by ESPN how Wimbledon 2017 could avoid becoming sidetracked by Maria moments.
"The Championships are so big and there are so many stars playing, male and female, I think it will stand on its own two feet. Whoever is playing, whoever does well, we will celebrate that."
The build-up may be a different story, an indication of the potential madness evident in the way that Sharapova-related issues dominated the All England Club's annual pre-tournament news conference on Wednesday.
But if Sharapova has to go through qualifying, having gained entry either through a wild card or ranking points, it would crank up a level or two more.
Wimbledon qualifying takes place a few miles away at the much smaller Bank of England Sports Ground, in Roehampton, and, even though changes have been made, coping with the attention that the 2004 champion would attract would be tricky.
With or without her, it will be a 1,000-capacity ticketed event this year with the £5 entrance fees going to a good cause: court covers to protect the surface and an improved players' area. The improvements are a happy coincidence, the All England Club claimed.
A good outcome for Wimbledon would be for Sharapova to get the requisite ranking points to avoid its sub-committee having to make a decision when it meets on June 20 on whether or not to grant her a wild card.
The world No. 262 would need to get closer to the top 200 to make qualifying without assistance and -- probably ideal for tournament organisers -- get in or near the top 100 to make the main draw; she has tournaments in Madrid and Rome this month in which to collect more ranking points.
But Lewis has a point about the start of the tournament proper. If Sharapova is playing, she will continue to make waves; the difference during majors is that she will not be alone.
Andy Murray will be a big story again this year and the top of the men's game is a fascinating place right now with both Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer resurgent.
Wimbledon also frequently throws up lines from leftfield. "There is often a lot of attention on off-court stuff but, once the play starts, the tennis speaks for itself," said Lewis. "To a certain extent you saw that in Stuttgart."
The All England Club has a few other things of its own going on, too, which could provide minor distractions, such as announcing that it would not only refuse to extend a Royal Box invitation to Ilie Nastase but also block his entry even if he had a ticket, if he were noticed at the gates.
The Romania Fed Cup captain is under investigation from the ITF after comments he made and has responded to the Wimbledon stance by calling it "small-minded".
The All England Club has also increased prize money again, by 12.5 percent overall, and 10 percent for the men's and women's singles champions, taking those payouts to £2.2 million each.
Regular fans may notice a partial roof on No. 1 Court, with cranes and workmen busy on site this week, although two years more work is required to make it retractable and complete the project.
"Wimbledon is a very strong event and we're looking forward to having a very successful and interesting tournament in any event," said chairman Philip Brook. He didn't say 'with or without Sharapova', but the inference about the woman who is the talk of tennis was clear.
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