The Czech migration service at ab airport stopped a female Russian tennis player from entering the country to participate in the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) tournament Prague Open, Czech news agency CTK reported on Friday, citing tournament organizers
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 28th July, 2023) The Czech migration service at ab airport stopped a female Russian tennis player from entering the country to participate in the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) tournament Prague Open, Czech news agency CTK reported on Friday, citing tournament organizers.
The athlete, whose name tournament organizers decided not to disclose, has already left Prague, according to the report.
Miroslav Maly, one of the organizers, said that the woman was the first of Russian and Belarusian athletes to arrive in the Czech Republic and the rest have already been informed that they were not welcome at the tournament.
"We do not expect that in this situation any tennis player with Russian or Belarusian citizenship will take part in the tournament," Maly was quoted as saying by the news agency.
Last week, Poland also denied entry to 38-year Russian tennis player Vera Zvonareva, who were supposed to take part in a WTA tournament in Warsaw. The country's authorities said that Zvonareva was on the list of undesirable persons, and, therefore, she was denied entry "for reasons of state security."
In April 2022, the WTA and the Association of Tennis Professionals allowed Russian and Belarusian tennis players to participate in their tournaments as neutral athletes.
