Despite Russia’s entry into Ukraine, the American Tennis Federation, which organizes the US Open, has chosen to welcome Russian and Belarusian tennis players.
The union’s CEO Lew Sherr explains the decision as follows:
– We do not want to hold individual athletes responsible for the actions of an entire country.
The players were allowed to participate in the French championships and like the grand slam tournament, they will now be allowed to play under a neutral flag.
Wimbledon already chose in April to exclude all players from the warring countries, but the US open does not follow suit.
– There are arguments for both sides here. This was also not a decision made on commercial or moral grounds, says Lew Sherr.
Among others, the men’s current world number one Daniil Medvedev and world number eight Andrej Rublev are allowed. On the women’s side, the Belarusian world fifth Aryna Sabalenka will participate.
The US open is played between August 29 and September 11.