admin The U.S. open which commences on 27th of August in New York, unlike the Wimbledon, will allow Russian and Belarusian tennis players to compete this year, in spite of the war ongoing in Ukraine. The crisis caused Wimbledon to ban these athletes.
Lew Sherr, U.S. Tennis Association CEO and Executive Director, said in a telephonic interview that the USTA Board’s decision to let Russians and Belarusians participate in the tournament was mainly due to “concern about holding the individual athletes accountable for the actions and decisions of their governments.”
Sherr also informed that the Russian and the Belarusian athletes will be playing under a neutral flag. This arrangement has already been employed at various tennis tournaments all over the world, the most recent one being the French Open that concluded on 5th of June.
Since Russia declared war on Ukraine in February and initiated its antagonistic actions, athletes of Russia have been prevented from entering several sports events, including soccer’s World Cup qualifying playoffs. Belarus, who has aided the Russian attempts, have seen similar consequences happen to their athletes.
Russia was also stopped from taking part in international team events, two of which had it as the reigning champion: the Billie Jean Cup and the Davis Cup.
In April, the All England Cup announced that it would bar all Russians and Belarusians from its fields. It meant that the currently ranked number one tennis player Daniil Medvedev is not eligible to compete. This drew immediate criticisms from the WTA and ATP professional tennis tours, in addition to a few prominent players, such as defending champion Novak Djokovic.
In May, the WTA and ATP declared that no ranking points will be awarded this year from Wimbledon. Many players, chief among them being the four-time major champion and former No. 1 Naomi Osaka, claimed that they would consider opting out of Wimbledon.
Sherr informed that what happened at Wimbledon – both the All England Club’s decision to prevent players from certain countries to participate and the subsequent reaction – had not effect on the USTA’s decision to allow Russian and Belarusian players in.
“The discussion was mainly focussed on the merits of the athletes. There are arguments being made on both sides. Question is, is holding an individual athlete accountable for their country’s government correct?”
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