The WTA has confirmed that players scheduled to play in next months Istanbul Open are allowed to withdraw from the event and play in another due to security concerns.
The tournament faces a threat of a mass withdrawal over ongoing security concerns. Last week it was confirmed that Camila Giorgi, Irina Falconi and Lucia Hradecka have withdrawn from the tournament due to the issues. Meanwhile, on Thursday is was also confirmed that Victoria Azarenka has also withdrawn from the event due to terrorism fears. The withdrawal of Azarenka, who would have been the top seed in Istanbul, is a massive blow for the organizers.
Turkey has experienced a series of terrorist attacks during 2016. As well as experiencing attacks from the Islamic State (ISIS), the country is also engaged in an ongoing conflict with Kurdish militants. The deadliest attacks have occurred outside of Istanbul, however, the city has also suffered bloodshed. On January 12th a suicide bomber killed 12 German and one Peruvian tourists. More recently, on March 19th one Iranian, one Israeli and two Israeli-Americans were killed in another suicide bombing in the city.
At the moment Caroline Wozniacki is the top seed in this year’s Istanbul Cup. Other entrants include Lesia Tsurenko, Yania Wickmayer and Danka Kovinic.
The Istanbul Cup, which is a $250,000 event, will get underway on April 18th. The 2016 tournament will be the ninth edition of the tournament. Previous winners of the tournament include Venus Williams (2005), Caroline Wozniacki (2014) and Lesia Tsurenko (2015).
The tournament occurs the same week as the Stuttgart Open in Germany, a premier tournament. Players are allowed to quit Istanbul and play in Stuttgart, if there are vacant positions.
Earlier this year the Slovenian Fed Cup team withdrew from competition in Egypt due to security concerns about the Cairo, the host city of the competition. Like Turkey, Egypt has suffered attacks from Islamic extremists this year.
SEE ALSO – The Threat Of Terrorism And The Everyday Reality For Tennis Players
