We, like many Australian’s are pretty into our sport, especially when there’s a professional category that caters for the disabled sportspeople amongst us. One of our favourites is Tennis (and our man Dylan Alcott!).
Despite this year continuing its program of turning things on their heads, many sporting codes have managed to find a way to bring their competition to life and thankfully, tennis is no exception.
You may have heard however, that with the re-scheduling of the US Open for 2020* there were some serious hiccups when it came to who was allowed to play. Initially they announced there would be no wheelchair division of the event, siting that “COVID-19 created a higher risk situation for wheelchair competitors” despite having a near full schedule for their able-bodied constituents.
The announcement came unfortunately after no consultation with wheelchair athletes which, as you can imagine, triggered a multitude of responses.
Thankfully strong voices shone through, creating an argument for wheelchair tennis that could not be ignored. One such voice was that of Dylan Alcott’s, who used his social media platforms to communicate his disappointment in the governing body that made the decision.
Dylan posted a series of comments on Twitter (and reposted to Instagram), one of which finished with:
“It is blatant discrimination for able bodied people to decide on my behalf what I do with my Life and career, just because I am disabled. Not good enough @usopen”
After public outcry and support from players in every corner of the world – the likes of Andy Murray and Roger Federer – the decision was later reversed, with the group that oversees tennis in the United States acknowledging that it should have consulted wheelchair athletes before making their decision.
Dylan Alcott’s advocacy for the disabled community shines strongly through his comments, while he also took the time to thank the US Open for reversing their decision
Alcott wrote on Twitter:
“The decision of not allowing us to compete, without communication or consideration was bigger than tennis,”
“In years gone by decisions would have been made for us and no one would have cared. You cannot be treated differently because of your gender, race, religion or disability.”
“This is a massive sign of progress for our community, and I appreciate all your help. I know there is a lot going on in the world at the moment, and the tournament might not even go ahead, but at least now we have the same rights as our able bodied counterparts – like we deserve”
“Big thanks to the @usopen for reversing their decision …”
The US Open is currently scheduled to start on August 24 with the Wheelchair tournament getting into gear on September 10. Tune in if you can, and cheer on our Aussies and head to the website to stay up to date with any changes:
Go Dylan!
*The US Open’s website states: At this time, the USTA plans to host the US Open as scheduled. Currently, we are not implementing any changes to the 2020 US Open, and planning for the event is ongoing. We are continually monitoring the evolving COVID-19 situation through regular briefings with government, security and medical experts. The USTA’s top priority is the health, safety and well-being of everyone involved with the US Open, including all the fans, ticket holders, players, volunteers and staff.
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