<mediadc-video-embed data-state="{"cms.site.owner":{"_ref":"00000161-3486-d333-a9e9-76c6fbf30000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b93390000"},"cms.content.publishDate":1655230276037,"cms.content.publishUser":{"_ref":"0000017d-00b6-db7d-abfd-7cb766d10000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b933a0007"},"cms.content.updateDate":1655230276037,"cms.content.updateUser":{"_ref":"0000017d-00b6-db7d-abfd-7cb766d10000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b933a0007"},"rawHtml":"
var _bp = _bp||[]; _bp.push({ "div": "Brid_54301065", "obj": {"id":"27789","width":"16","height":"9","video":"1025488"} }); rn","_id":"00000181-6369-d1f1-a1c3-7beb9dbe0000","_type":"2f5a8339-a89a-3738-9cd2-3ddf0c8da574"}”>Video EmbedRussian and Belarusian tennis players will be permitted to play in the 2022 U.S. Open as long as they compete under a neutral flag, organizers announced.
The U.S. Tennis Association, which organizes the tournament, reiterated its previous condemnations of the “unprovoked and unjust invasion of Ukraine by Russia” in its announcement Tuesday while declaring that all eligible players “regardless of nationality” can participate in its event.
NO LOVE: WIMBLEDON BANS RUSSIANS AND BELARUSIANS FROM TOURNAMENT
“Tennis has done much through Tennis Plays for Peace for humanitarian support of Ukraine. Unfortunately, the need for help only continues to grow. The USTA will be responding very soon with a broad set of initiatives that will include significant financial assistance and other programs to further support humanitarian relief and the people of Ukraine,” Chairman Mike McNulty said in a statement.
Organizers for the U.S. Open reaffirmed support for the International Tennis Federation’s ban on teams from Russia or Belarus in its competition and emphasized that it will adhere to that policy.
Rather than going further than the ITF ban, the USTA will seek to elevate the “Tennis Plays for Peace” initiative, which aims to raise money for relief efforts in war-torn Ukraine. The group also teased additional initiatives such as financial support for Ukraine that will “be announced soon.”
Part of the rationale behind the decision not to bar all players from competing was a “concern about holding the individual athletes accountable for the actions and decisions of their governments,” USTA CEO and Executive Director Lew Sherr told the Associated Press.
Last year’s winner of the U.S. Open was Russian player Daniil Medvedev, who currently ranks as the No. 1 men’s tennis player in the world, according to ESPN. The USTA’s decision will enable him to defend his title in the major, which is slated to commence Aug. 29 in New York.
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USTA’s open-arms posture toward individual Russian and Belarusian players is juxtaposed with the All England Club’s handling of the war in Ukraine. The latter banned all players from Russia and Belarus from competing in its prestigious Wimbledon event, which will be held from June 27 to July 10.
Both tournaments are part of the four major Grand Slam tennis tournaments alongside the Australian Open and the French Open. The organizers of the French Open declined to follow suit with the Wimbledon rules and did not outright ban players from the two nations from competing. The 2022 Australian Open took place prior to the invasion of Ukraine.
