Wimbledon to give free tickets to Ukrainian refugees
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 [June 25, 2022] (Reuters)-Wimbledon
will give Ukrainian refugees free tickets to the tournament's
'Middle Sunday' and donate 250,000 pounds ($307,100) to those
affected by Russia's invasion of the country, the organisers of the
grasscourt Grand Slam said on Friday.
Following the invasion, Wimbledon banned Russian and Belarusian
players from the tournament, resulting in the men's ATP Tour and
women's WTA Tour taking away its ranking points.
Russia describes its actions in Ukraine as "special military
operation" while Belarus is a key staging area.
Ukrainian refugees in the boroughs of Merton and Wandsworth as well
as their sponsors and charity delivery partners will be eligible for
tickets, the All England Club and the Lawn Tennis Association said.
The donation of 250,000 pounds will be made to the Tennis Plays for
Peace initiative and the British Red Cross Ukraine Appeal on behalf
of Wimbledon, which begins on Monday.
"On the eve of The Championships I believe it's important that we
acknowledge those that are suffering so greatly due to the
unrelenting conflict imposed upon Ukraine," LTA chief executive
Scott Lloyd said in a statement.
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General view of centre court ahead of Wimbledon REUTERS/Paul Childs
Wimbledon will be a 14-day tournament from this
year, with matches scheduled on Middle Sunday, traditionally a day
off, as organisers no longer need a whole day to get the courts back
into shape due to improved technology.
Middle Sunday is also known as People's Sunday because, on some
occasions in the past, tickets have been made available on general
sale on that day when rain delays have resulted in some matches
being postponed.
"They (Ukrainian refugees) will be joined on Middle Sunday by local
residents, COVID heroes from the NHS and social care, and a variety
of schools, charities and community groups," the two associations
said.
($1 = 0.8141 pounds)
(Reporting by Silvia Recchimuzzi in Gdansk; Editing by Toby Davis)
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