A climate change protester warned we only have '1028 days left' as she interrupted the ongoing French open and tied herself to the net.
The activist walked out onto the Court Phillipe-Chatrier during the match between Croatia's Marin Cilic and Norwegian player Casper Ruud on Friday (3 May), as the pair went head-to-head in the semi-final.
Identified as a French national, the woman attached herself to the net using metal wires and glue and knelt on the court while wearing a t-shirt that read 'We have 1028 days left'.
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See the events unfold below:
The figure appears to be a reference to 2025 goals set by the United Nations, with a report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) explaining global greenhouse gas emissions would have to peak 'before 2025 at the latest, and be reduced by 43 percent by 2030' in order to stick to the limit of 1.5°C set in the Paris Agreement.
Climate change group Dernière Rénovation has taken the responsibility for the protest on the court, with a statement on the website identifying the protester by the name Alizée.
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She commented (translated): "We are in 2022 and it is time to face reality, the world to which politicians are sending us is a world to which Roland Garros (The French Open) will no longer be able to exist. Today, I entered the field because I can no longer take the risk of doing nothing in the face of the climate emergency.”
Play was delayed by approximately 15 minutes as a result of the protest, which saw members of security come to remove the activist from the fence.
In the wake of the incident, the French Tennis Federation said in a statement: "The young woman, of French nationality, entered the grounds with a valid ticket early in the day. The security team needed to formally identify the objects she used to get onto the court before they could remove her."
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The protester was 'handed over to the police', according to the federation.
Rudd admitted he 'didn't really know how to react' to the protest, according to WION News, saying: "It was a little bit tricky and difficult situation. Never happened to me before. So we were taken outside for six, seven minutes and I got to regroup a little bit and got my flow going again."
Ruud and Cilic were given three minutes to warm up before resuming their semi-final following the interruption.
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Topics: Sport, World News, Climate Change, Environment
Emily Brown