New York (AFP) – President Donald Trump’s attendance at the US Open men’s final on Sunday delayed the start of the match, as hordes of tennis fans struggled to get through tightened security checkpoints. The president joined a host of other celebrities taking in the battle between Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz in his first visit to the New York tournament in a decade. Trump was greeted with loud boos — mixed with a smattering of cheers — when he was shown on screen during the match, which was delayed by 30 minutes due to his presence.
By the start of the second set, an AFP journalist saw roughly 250 people still waiting in stagnant lines to pass enhanced security checks to enter the venue. One couple from South Africa said they had been waiting for more than an hour. Trump has not attended the US Open since 2015 when the then-presidential candidate and wife Melania were booed on arrival by the crowd. While the Republican leader enjoys pockets of support in his native city, it is overwhelmingly Democratic.
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People watching the Sinner-Alcaraz showdown on television may not see any unfavorable reactions to the president because event organizers asked broadcasters not to showcase disruptions, according to several US media reports. Spanish star Alcaraz said Friday he planned to “try not to think about” the Trump hubbub in the stands, but appreciated the attention his visit would bring to the sport. “I don’t want myself to be nervous because of it, but I think attending the tennis match, it’s great for tennis to have the president (at) the final.”
Major tournament sponsor Rolex welcomed Trump into its stadium box, with the president briefly appearing alongside the company’s CEO, as well as US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. The Geneva-based luxury watchmaker’s invite came after Trump hit Switzerland with a 39-percent tariff as part of his trade war, one of the highest rates on US trade partners. Attorney General Pam Bondi, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, and Steve Witkoff — Trump’s envoy for peace missions — were also present.
– Sports fan – Trump has attended a series of glitzy sporting events since retaking office in January. He was booed at the FIFA Club World Cup final in New Jersey but had a warmer reception at the Super Bowl and a number of Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) bouts, as well as the Daytona 500 NASCAR race. Trump says he also plans to attend the first day of golf’s Ryder Cup later this month, and preparations are underway for him to host a UFC fight on the White House grounds.
Trump has hailed the 2026 World Cup — jointly hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico — and the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles as part of what he claims is a “Golden Age of America” ushered in by his presidency. Both events were scheduled before he won reelection. The last sitting president to attend the tennis Grand Slam in New York — and the first in history to go to the US Open — was Democrat Bill Clinton, who watched the women’s final in 2000. Trump was there as well and had a cordial meeting with Clinton, according to pictures from the encounter.
Though Trump made his name in New York, he changed his residency during his first term from Manhattan to his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida. The 79-year-old has only intermittently returned to New York, but spent several weeks at his luxury Fifth Avenue condo last year while undergoing a historic criminal trial mid-campaign. He is expected back in the city to attend a baseball game on the anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks, as well as to address the UN General Assembly on September 23.
© 2024 AFP
