NYC climate protesters at U.S. Open say outdoor tennis may soon be impossible - Gothamist

NYC climate protesters at U.S. Open say outdoor tennis may soon be impossible - Gothamist

Climate protesters brought a U.S. Open semifinal match to a halt Thursday night as they chanted for their cause in the upper stands, with one of them supergluing his bare feet to the stadium’s floor.

The incident unfolded around 8 p.m., just as players Coco Gauff and Karolina Muchova were starting the second set of their semifinal.

Videos shared on social media show two men and a woman standing up and shouting from their seats in the upper stands, wearing shirts that say “End Fossil Fuels.” They’re met with a chorus of boos from surrounding spectators, as a security guard threatens to kick them out.

Police eventually responded and escorted the protesters away, though responders had to step in to safely unstick activist Shayok Mukhopadhyay from his spot, according to the NYPD. It’s unclear how exactly they did that.

Police said they arrested Mukhopadhyay, 50, of White Plains, New York for trespassing and disorderly conduct. They also arrested 35-year-old Gregory Schwedock, of Manhattan, for trespass. Both were given desk appearance tickets.

The fracas and police response caused the match to be delayed by about 50 minutes.

The protesters say they represent the group Extinction Rebellion NYC. In a press release, they claimed not to be protesting tennis itself for its role in fossil fuel emissions, but rather the government’s weak response to the climate crisis.

“We are not protesting the emissions that brought spectators to get here. That's not the point,” said Mukhopadhyay in a written statement. “We are here because we have to disrupt this public event as our last resort to draw public attention to the climate emergency we are facing today.”

The U.S. Open in Queens is one of the premier events in professional tennis and draws an audience from across the globe.

Miles Grant, Extinction Rebellion spokesperson, said the minor disruption was no worse than the kinds of delays extreme weather has already caused at matches around the world.

“Just look at the U.S. Open and other big tennis events — year after year, the average temperatures have been rising, making it hotter and more dangerous for the players and spectators. At some point, there will be fewer outdoor sporting events due to excessive heat,” he said in a statement.

The group said it wants the Biden administration to “tell the truth by declaring a climate and ecological emergency,” halt biodiversity loss, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2025.

As temperatures this week soared through the 90s, players at times struggled to push through the heat.

Russian player Daniil Medvedev, who won the tournament in 2021, warned Wednesday during a match against Andrey Rublev that “one player [is] gonna die, and they’re gonna see.” According to the AP, Medvedev had to use an inhaler at one point, and a doctor had to check his breathing with a stethoscope.

“Tennis-as-usual won't be possible on a planet in which humanity fails to keep global warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius. If activists don’t disrupt these games, the climate will,” said Extinction Rebellion spokesperson Mun Chong in a written statement.

Triple-digit temperatures and monsoon-like rain delayed play at the Australian Open in January.

In a statement on X, the U.S. Tennis Association said three of four protesters involved in the disturbance “were escorted out of the stadium without further incident.”

“The fourth protester affixed their bare feet to the floor of the seating bowl. Due to the nature of this action, NYPD and medical personnel were needed in order to safely remove this individual from the stadium,” the statement read. “The four protesters were taken into NYPD custody. In total, 49 minutes elapsed before play resumed.”

Despite the interruption, Gauff swept the match, winning two straight sets to advance to the finals this weekend.