2009 Shahar Pe'er Visa Controversy
In February 2009, Israeli player Shahar Pe'er was denied entry visa by the United Arab Emirates, a country that does not have diplomatic relations with Israel. Tournament director Salah Tahlak said that Pe'er was refused on the grounds that her appearance could incite anger in the Arab country, after she had already faced protests earlier at the ASB Classic over the 2008–2009 Israel–Gaza conflict. A number of top-seeded players, among them Venus Williams, condemned the action to not grant Pe'er a visa.
In response, the Dubai Tennis Championship was fined a record US$300,000. The fine was appealed by DTC, but the WTA Tour Board rejected the appeal. Pe'er was awarded a guarantee to enter the next (2010) edition of the event, plus US$44,250, an amount equal to the average prize money she earned per tournament in 2008. A number of highly-ranked tennis players, including 2008 winner Andy Roddick, pulled out of the men's event (ATP 500 Dubai) which was scheduled to take place the week after the women's event. As a result, the UAE issued Israeli Andy Ram a visa for the men's tournament.
Read more about this topic: Dubai Tennis Championships
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