French Open organizers said that Novak Djokovic "will be allowed to play" at the event even if he is "not vaccinated against COVID-19 as long as the coronavirus situation in France remains stable," according to Samuel Petrequin of the AP. French Open Dir Amelie Mauresmo at a news conference said, “At this stage there is nothing to stop him returning to the courts." 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." Meanwhile, Russian tennis players, including top-ranked Daniil Medvedev, also will be "admitted to play in the tournament," but as "neutral athletes because of the war started by their country in neighboring Ukraine." 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." French Tennis Federation Dir General Amelie Oudea-Castera said that French Open organizers "don’t plan to start a detailed and individualized analysis of players’ individual situations" (AP, 3/16).
WTA MAKES STANCE KNOWN: REUTERS' Shrivathsa Sridhar reports WTA Chair & CEO Steve Simon indicated that "individual athletes should not be penalised for 'decisions of an authoritarian leadership' amid concerns that players from Russia and Belarus could be blocked from competing in tournaments." Russian and Belarusian players are currently "allowed to play on the elite ATP and WTA Tours but not under the name or flag of their countries following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, for which Belarus was a key staging area." Simon: "We have never banned athletes from participating on our tour as the result of political positions their leadership may take. So it would take something very significant for that to change" (REUTERS, 3/16).
