A group of fans at the tennis Australian Open during the quarter-finals between Novak Djokovic and Andrey Rublev wore symbols supporting the Russian occupation of Ukraine – a flag with the likeness of President Vladimir Putin or the letter Z on their clothes.
Four tennis fans were detained and questioned by Victoria Police on Wednesday. Those at the tennis complex in Melbourne unfurled Russian flags, one of which had a photo of President Vladimir Putin printed on it.
According to Australian media reports, the group also behaved violently.
Fans were on the steps outside Rod Laver’s main arena, according to the Herald Sun and available records.
“Four people displayed inappropriate flags and symbols and threatened security personnel,” said a spokesman for the tournament organizers.
A man was seen wearing the letter Z on his T-shirt under his jacket, a symbol associated with Russian aggression in Ukraine, directly in the center court auditorium. And he even had so much audacity that he ran out to get Novak Djokovic’s signature after the match.
The Australian Tennis Association has not yet released a statement or further information on the case. One of the people who recorded the incident was Tumaini Carayol, a reporter for the British newspaper The Guardian.
Just took a walk around Melbourne Park after filing and a group of people were standing on the Rod Laver Arena steps, holding up a flag with Vladimir Putin’s face and chanting in support of Russia. pic.twitter.com/2p0LfkyVC3
— Tumaini Carayol (@tumcarayol) January 25, 2023
Spectators at this year’s Australian Open are prohibited from displaying Russian and Belarusian flags. The organizers decided so after the intervention of the Ukrainian ambassador.
Security in Melbourne even has a manual with a list of signs that fans are not allowed to enter the venue.
Since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, Russian and Belarusian tennis players have been competing under the neutral white flag as independents, they could not even participate in last year’s Wimbledon following the decision of the British organizers.
???? And just like that … we believe this is the 1st display of the Z symbol of Russia’s war on Ukraine at the international tennis tournament.
???? Looks like he was hiding it under the white t-shirt huh? pic.twitter.com/iG6Z0wtdkq
— Ukrainian Tennis • BTU (@ukrtennis_eng) January 25, 2023
