Jonathan Erlich + Andy RamIsraeli doubles specialist Andy Ram will receive a visa by the United Arab Emirates to play in Dubai, according to Reuters.
Via ESPN.com:
An Israeli men's tennis player will get a visa to play in the Dubai Tennis Championships, a U.S. congressman said on Wednesday, adding that as a result he will not ask the ATP to cancel the event.No word yet from the ATP. I'm more interested, though, to hear the WTA's and Shahar's response to the ATP's successful actions.
In the wake of the Gulf state's denial of a visa for a female Israeli tennis player, Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-N.Y.) had scheduled a news conference on Wednesday to press the ATP to withdraw its backing for the tournament, a spokesman for the congressman said.
But Yousef Al Otaiba, the United Arab Emirates ambassador to Washington, has assured Weiner that the men's doubles player, Andy Ram, will be allowed to play in the Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships, which starts Monday.
The female player, Shahar Peer, has already missed her event, because the women's open portion began earlier this week.
"Ms. Shahar Peer is a victim of politics over sportsmanship," Weiner said in a statement.
The event is one of the WTA's most prestigious events and attracted additional international attention this year because of the UAE's decision to bar Peer from entering.
That prompted The Wall Street Journal's European edition to withdraw its sponsorship on Tuesday. The Journal's parent company, Dow Jones & Co., is owned by Rupert Murdoch's international media conglomerate News Corp.
The UAE, like most Arab countries, has no diplomatic ties with Israel and routinely denies entry to Israelis.
The tournament's organizers supported the decision to deny Peer a visa, saying local tennis fans would have boycotted the championships if she had been allowed to compete. Peer's presence would have antagonized fans who had watched recent television coverage of Israeli attacks on Gaza, tournament director Salah Tahlak said.
The three-week Israeli offensive against the Gaza Strip killed 1,300 Palestinians and 14 Israelis. The attack, which ended in January, sparked outrage in the Arab and Muslim worlds. Israel said it acted in defense of rocket attacks from the Gaza strip.
In other news, the Sweden vs. Israel Davis Cup tie to be held in the Swedish city of Malmo will be played in an empty arena as a result of planned anti-Israeli demonstrations at Baltic Hall. This sucks.
UPDATE: So the decision may not be finalized just yet according to Doug Robson.
UPDATE #2: The UAE confirmed it was giving Andy "special permission" to play in Dubai, reports The Independent. Let's hope this issue finds a rightful conclusion.
(image via Getty)
I'm very glad that the ATP took action and didn't allow itself to be pushed around like the WTA. I hope that this makes the WTA take a long hard look at its actions(or should I say inactions.) Hopefully this will set a precedent that discrimination will not be allowed in the tennis world and that pretending that one's helpless in the situation is not acceptable, do you hear me Larry Scott?
ReplyDeleteGood on the ATP for fighting the good fight. Lets hope it's true...
ReplyDeleteParticularly as they REALLy can't afford to ditch the oil money in the middle east - they're enough in the hole as it is.
Rich why are you advertising the Dubai tournament on your website?
ReplyDeleteanon: It's a banner for TennisTV.com, not an ad for the tourney. They are showing a few of the tournaments live actually.
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