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US Open Will Allow Russian, Belarusian Tennis Players


Russia's Daniil Medvedev, shown here during the men's singles final of the 2021 U.S. Open tennis championships, will be able to defend his title as Russian and Belarusian players will be allowed to compete in the tournament.
Russia's Daniil Medvedev, shown here during the men's singles final of the 2021 U.S. Open tennis championships, will be able to defend his title as Russian and Belarusian players will be allowed to compete in the tournament.

Citing "concern about holding individual athletes accountable for the actions and decisions of their governments," the U.S. Tennis Association will let Russian and Belarusian tennis players participate in the U.S. Open later this summer.

Wimbledon will still maintain the ban on those athletes, which will include the world’s No. 1 player, Daniil Medvedev. Medvedev is the defending U.S. Open champion.

Wimbledon starts June 27 in England. The U.S. Open starts August 29 in New York.

Players from Russia and Belarus will participate under a neutral flag.

Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February, Russian athletes have been banned from competing in a variety of sports, including soccer's World Cup qualifying playoffs.

Some information in this report comes from The Associated Press and Reuters.

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