USTA to permit tennis players from Russia, Belarus to compete at US Open under neutral flag

The US Open will allow tennis players from Russia and Belarus to compete this year despite the ongoing war in Ukraine, which prompted Wimbledon to ban those athletes.

U.S. Tennis Association CEO and Executive Director Lew Sherr, whose group runs the US Open, said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press on Tuesday that the USTA Board decided to let Russians and Belarusians enter the tournament because of “concern about holding the individual athletes accountable for the actions and decisions of their governments.”

Sherr said athletes from Russia and Belarus will play at Flushing Meadows under a neutral flag — an arrangement that’s been used at various tennis tournaments around the world, including the French Open, which ended June 5.

The US Open starts on Aug. 29 in New York.

Since Russia began its attacks on Ukraine in February, Russian athletes have been prevented from taking part in many sports, including soccer’s World Cup qualifying playoffs. Belarus has aided Russia in the war.

Russia also was held out of international team events in tennis, the Billie Jean King Cup and Davis Cup. It was the reigning champion in both.

The All England Club, where main-draw play for Wimbledon starts on June 27, announced in April it would bar all Russians and Belarusians from its fields — which means the man currently ranked No. 1, Russia’s Daniil Medvedev, is not eligible to participate. Medvedev is the defending champion at the US Open.

That ban drew immediate criticism from the WTA and ATP professional tennis tours, along with some prominent players, such as defending champion Novak Djokovic.

In May, the WTA and ATP said they would not award any rankings points from Wimbledon this year, an unprecedented rebuke of the All England Club. Some players, including four-time major champion and former No. 1 Naomi Osaka, said they would consider sitting out Wimbledon.

The ATP has said all points earned at Wimbledon in 2021 will fall off a player’s record and no new points will be earned there this year. The WTA has not decided exactly how last year’s rankings points from the All England Club will be treated, but no new points can be added based on how a player performs there this time.

Sherr told the AP that what happened with Wimbledon — both the All England Club's move to keep players from certain countries out and the tours' reaction — played no role in the USTA’s choice to let Russian and Belarusian players in.

“Our discussion was really on the merits and really the principles around both sides of this argument. This was not a commercial versus an ethical question,” he said. “There are arguments on both sides. Are you being perceived as supporting atrocious acts by a government? And at the same time: Would you hold an individual athlete accountable for that?”

STATEMENT FROM USTA REGARDING RUSSIAN AND BELARUSIAN PLAYERS

The USTA will allow individual athletes from Russia and Belarus to compete in the 2022 US Open, but only under a neutral flag. Alongside the other Grand Slams, the ITF, the ATP and the WTA, the USTA, which owns and operates the US Open, has previously condemned, and continues to condemn, the unprovoked and unjust invasion of Ukraine by Russia. The USTA, standing with these other tennis entities, supported the banning of the Russian and Belarusian Tennis Federations from the ITF, and therefore all international team competitions, and the directive for players from those countries to play under a neutral flag when competing outside of international team competitions.

We recognize that each organization has had to deal with unique circumstances that affect their decisions. Based on our own circumstances, the USTA will allow all eligible players, regardless of nationality, to compete at the 2022 US Open.

The USTA will work with the players and both Tours to use the US Open as a platform to further the humanitarian effort of the “Tennis Plays for Peace” program. In addition, the USTA will introduce a broad, comprehensive set of initiatives to amplify existing Ukrainian humanitarian efforts, including committing to significant financial support, for which details will be announced soon.

Mike McNulty, USTA Chairman of the Board and President:

“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.”