After the riot in Cincinnati - how many flags can you fly at the US Open?
In Cincinnati, a visitor wrapped in a Ukrainian flag watching a match between two Russian women was escorted off the facility. Will there be similar incidents at the US Open?
by tennisnet.com
last edit: Aug 17, 2022, 02:20 pm
In tennis, it is by no means unusual for fans to show their support for certain players by waving flags. Above all, of course, in the team competitions. But also in individual tournaments. In Cincinnati, a spectator who was wrapped in a Ukrainian flag watching a qualifying match was expelled from the facility on Monday. However, the two participants, Anna Kalinskaya and Anastasia Potapova, felt disturbed by this flag. Both Kalinskaya and Potapova are from Russia.
The two complained to chair umpire Morgane Lara, who in turn asked the spectator to make the flag go away. When this didn't happen, the viewer (a US citizen with Uzbek roots, by the way) was escorted off the facility. Official reason: The flag would have exceeded the prescribed maximum dimensions.
While the Russian and Belarusian players were excluded from Wimbledon due to the war of aggression against Ukraine, Medvedev, Sabalenka and Co. are allowed to take part in the tournaments in the USA and Canada. This is also the case at the US Open, which begins on August 29 with the main draw games.
It will now be interesting to see if flags are waved in the stands. And if so, what size? In any case, Alexandr Dolgopolov, who is no longer active on the ATP tour, asked the fans to show support for Ukraine.