Joe GallopWimbledon organisers the All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) has invited local Ukrainian refugees to attend one day of the Championships, and is making a further £250,000 donation to relevant charities.
AELTC has invited refugees who have settled in the boroughs of Merton and Wandsworth to attend the tournament’s Middle Sunday on 3 July. They will be joined by NHS key workers and several schools, charities and community groups.
AELTC and the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) have committed the £250,000 donation to the refugee response efforts through the Tennis Plays for Peace initiative and the British Red Cross Ukraine Appeal.
The donation is in addition to £200,000 committed by the Wimbledon Foundation to the British Red Cross Emergency Appeal, the Polish Family Association (PFA) for their immediate refugee response work, and to Disasters Emergency Committee Appeal, and an initial $100,000 (£81,460) contribution from Wimbledon to Tennis Plays for Peace.
AELTC said the Ukrainian Ambassador to the UK will be in attendance in Wimbledon’s Royal Box on the opening day’s play.
AELTC chairman Ian Hewitt said, “I’m delighted that Ukrainian refugees hosted across Merton and Wandsworth will be joining us for play on Middle Sunday at Wimbledon, which we hope will have a very special atmosphere in its first year as part of the tournament schedule. I’m also delighted that, in partnership with the LTA, we have been able to commit an additional £250,000 towards the humanitarian response in Ukraine.”