Russian tennis players, including top-ranked Daniil
Medvedev, will also be admitted to play in the tournament but as neutral
athletes because of the war started by their country in neighboring Ukraine.
Organizers said there is nothing at the moment preventing
Djokovic from defending his title at the clay-court Grand Slam. France this
week lifted measures requiring the need to wear face masks in most settings and
allowing people who aren’t vaccinated back into restaurants, sports arenas and
other venues.
“At this stage there is nothing to stop him returning to the
courts,” French Open director Amelie Mauresmo said at a news conference.
Djokovic was deported from Australia in January after a
legal battle over whether he should be allowed to enter the country, forcing
him to miss the Australian Open. He told the BBC last month that he was willing
to miss upcoming Grand Slam tournaments as well if they required him to get
vaccinated.
Djokovic has won the French Open twice and has a total of 20
major titles, one short of the record held by Rafael Nadal after the Spaniard
won this year’s Australian Open.
French tennis federation president Gilles Moretton said that
although Djokovic is now free to play, French authorities might be forced to
introduce new restrictions if the virus situation deteriorates before the
tournament starts on May 22.
“It is not up to us,” Moretton said. “Today there is a
little virus that is going around. We are quite confident that the lights are
green, but we are all cautious about what has happened over the last two
years.”
Asked whether Russian tennis players will be allowed to
compete at the tournament in the light of the war in Ukraine, organizers said
they plan to stick to decisions suspending Russia and ally Belarus but allowing
their players to compete as neutral athletes.
The seven groups that run the sport around the world have
condemned the war; canceled events in Russia and Belarus; kicked those two
nations out of the Billie Jean King Cup and Davis Cup team competitions; and
announced on March 1 that players from those countries will be allowed to
compete in WTA, ATP and Grand Slam tournaments but not under the name or flag
of Russia or Belarus.
“We are holding this line,” said Amelie Oudea-Castera, the
French tennis federation director general.
Other sports, including track and field, soccer and figure
skating, have barred Russian and Belarusian athletes from competition.
Wimbledon organizers are having conversations with the British
government about whether Russian players should be allowed to compete at the
grass-court tournament this year if they don’t distance themselves from
President Vladimir Putin.
Oudea-Castera said French organizers don’t plan to start a
detailed and individualized analysis of players’ individual situations, which
“can be extraordinarily dependent on the family situations experienced by each
of them.”
Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, the day Medvedev was
assured of moving atop the ATP rankings for the first time while competing at
the Mexico Open.
“Watching the news from home, waking up here in Mexico, was
not easy,” Medvedev said then. “By being a tennis player, I want to promote
peace all over the world. We play in so many different countries; I’ve been in
so many countries as a junior and as a pro. It’s just not easy to hear all this
news. ... I’m all for peace.”
Without any outdoor restrictions in place, Moretton said he
expects the Roland Garros venues to be used at “maximum capacity” this year
after the previous two editions were affected by the pandemic. Tickets went on
sale this month, and Moretton said about 500,000 seats out of the 600,000 available
for the day sessions have already been sold.
For the 10 night sessions on Court Philippe Chatrier, only
50,000 tickets remain available from the 150,000 on sale.
“We will be very happy to be back together, we are
delighted,” Moretton said. -AP
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