2023-09-08 15:25:00
When the guards went to remove the protesters by force, they found that one of them had stuck his feet to the ground / Photo: AFP.
The first women’s semi-final of the US Open tennis tournament held on Thursday was interrupted for 49 minutes due to a protest from the stands. by a group of climate change activists.
When the security personnel approached to remove the protesters by force, they found that one of them had stuck his bare feet to the ground, so doctors had to intervene to remove him without causing injuries.
The match was stopped by four activists wearing “End Fossil Fuels” T-shirts.
The young American Coco Gauff, who finally won the match against the Czech Karolina Muchova and therefore her place in the final, dominated 6-4 and 1-0 when screams were heard from the top of Center Court in New York.
According to the American Tennis Association (USTA), there were four protesters who, wearing t-shirts with the slogan “End fossil fuels”, began shouting with the same message, reported the AFP news agency.
The group’s protest, which was attributed to the environmental organization Extinction Rebellion (XR), was greeted with boos and chants of “Throw them out” by other spectators of the largest tennis court in the world (23,000 spectators).
After the initial confusion, Gauff and Muchova waited on the tarmac while security personnel moved to the protesters’ area.
The match between Coco Gauff and Karolina Muchova was stopped by climate activists for almost an hour during the protest / Photo: AFP.
With feet glued to the floor
After a wait of around 15 minutes on the court, both players They chose to take their backpacks and leave. to the locker rooms.
Television footage showed Gauff and Muchova trying to stay calm in the locker room, doing exercises to keep from getting cold and consulting with their coaches.
“The climate and ecological crisis threatens everything on our planet, including sport”Extinction Rebellion
Several protesters were removed but one of them stuck his feet to the concrete floor of the courtmaking it difficult for security to evict him.
“Three of the four protesters were escorted out of the stadium without further incident. The fourth protester planted his bare feet on the ground,” the USTA explained in its statement.
protests
The interruption of the US Open women’s semifinal is the latest in a series of protests led by climate activists in major sporting events, including the largest tennis tournaments.
Last year, an activist broke into the Roland Garros men’s semi-final between Marin Cilic and Casper Ruud by tying herself to the net. In July, three people were arrested after disrupting play at Wimbledon, scattering confetti and puzzle pieces across the track.
“Due to the nature of this action, it took medical and NYPD personnel to remove safely remove this person from the court,” the USTA said.
The protester was removed in handcuffs and under the boos of nearby spectators. The USTA said the four activists were taken into police custody.
Gauff, 19, ended up winning the match 6-4, 7-5 and will play in her first US Open final.
Extinction Rebellion
In a statement, Extinction Rebellion said the protest had been designed to draw attention to the “greatest emergency of our time”.
“The climate and ecological crisis threatens everything on our planet, including sport,” the group said in a statement. Shayok Mukhopadhyay, XR activist, He stressed that the action had been carried out as a “last resort”.
“We are not protesting against the event itself, we are not protesting against tennis… We are here because we have to interrupt this public event as a last resort to draw public attention to the climate emergency we face today” said Mukhopadhyay.
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