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Climate activists' protest halts US Open match

September 8, 2023

The US Open became the latest high-profile sporting event interrupted by environmental activists demanding the end of fossil fuel usage. The Extinction Rebellion group said it used the event as their "last resort."

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Three people standing in the stands of the US Open wearing shirts that say End fossil fuels
The Extinction Rebellion group called for an end to burning fossil fuelsImage: John Minchillo/AP Photo/picture alliance

The ongoing US Open tennis tournament was disrupted on Thursday after environmental activists staged a protest and forced a game to halt midway.

Coco Gauff's US open semifinal victory over Karolina Muchova was delayed by 50 minutes when four climate activists wearing t-shirts saying "end fossil fuels" began sloganeering.

One of the protesters glued his bare feet to the concrete floor. The Extinction Rebellion (XR) group said it was behind the protest.

Protesters taken into custody

The US Tennis Association (USTA) said three of the protesters were immediately escorted out of the stadium but it took time to remove the fourth person whose feet were stuck to the ground.

Climate activists get creative

"Due to the nature of this action, NYPD (New York Police Department) and medical personnel were needed in order to safely remove this individual from the stadium," said the USTA in a statement.

Spectators were moved away from the scene. Gauff and Muchova, who initially waited on the court, eventually left for their locker rooms.

USTA added that all four protesters had been taken into police custody.

XR: The protest was a 'last resort'

The Extinction Rebellion said in a statement on Thursday that the protest was designed to draw attention to the "greatest emergency of our time."

Shayok Mukhopadhyay, an XR activist, said that while the group was not protesting the event itself, they had to use the US Open event as a "last resort" to "draw public attention to the climate emergency we are facing today."

One of the protesters who identified himself as Ian said the US Open has sponsorship deals with corporations whose policies are contributing to climate change.

Sporting events disrupted by protests

The US Open has become the latest high-profile sporting event to be targeted by climate protesters.

Last month at a US Open tune-up tournament, a dozen people were asked to leave the site after they chanted and displayed signs protesting the use of fossil fuels.

Security personnel grab climate protests during a cricket match
Two men from the "Just Stop Oil" movement disrupted The Ashes cricket test match Image: Mike Egerton/AP/picture alliance

At Wimbledon in July, two matches were halted when environmental activists jumped out of the stands and scattered orange confetti on the grass.

In June, two men from the "Just Stop Oil" movement disrupted The Ashes cricket test match in England and scattered orange powder on the field.

Similar disruptions have taken place during the World Snooker Championship, the English Premiership rugby final and Formula One racing events.

ns/sms (AFP, AP)