The United Arab Emirates (UAE) will allow the Israeli player Andy Ram to compete in the men's Dubai Tennis Championships next week. Ram was been given "special permission" to take part, and a UAE government official said that the decision did not "politically imply any form of normalization with countries with which the UAE has no diplomatic relations." Shahar Peer, Ram's compatriot, had to forfeit her place in the women's tournament after her visa application was blocked.
The Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) had been under pressure to ensure Ram could compete after the player was denied a visa. ATP president Adam Helfant said: "I am pleased that the efforts to secure Andy Ram's visa to compete in the ATP World Tour 500 event in Dubai next week have been successful. The United Arab Emirates government has made the right decision in allowing Andy Ram to enter their country and compete in next week's Dubai Tennis Championships. No player who qualifies to play an ATP World Tour event should be denied their right to compete on the basis of ethnicity, nationality or religion and we are happy that the Dubai Tennis Championships and the UAE have shown that they share that view."
Ronald S. Lauder, president of the World Jewish Congress, had protested the UAE's decision and called it "scandalous" that Israeli players would be excluded from the tournament for political reasons.
