Protesters have disrupted play on Court 18 at Wimbledon. The protesters ran onto the court during a match between Grigor Dimitrov and Sho Shimabukuro and threw orange-coloured confetti and a jigsaw onto the grass, before one protester sat down on the court.
In a statement, Just Stop Oil said “we can’t leave it to the next generation to pick up the pieces”.
Deborah Wilde, 68, a retired teacher from London, who was one of the protesters who ran on the court shortly after 2.10pm, said: “I’m just an ordinary grandmother in resistance to this government’s policy of serving us new oil and gas licences. In normal circumstances this sort of disruption would be entirely unacceptable, but these aren’t normal circumstances.
“We’ve just had the hottest June on record, breaking the previous record by nearly a whole degree! We don’t need Hawk-eye to see that our government issuing over 100 new fossil fuel licences is a very bad line-call.
“Forget strawberries and cream, scientists are warning of impending food shortages, mass displacement and war. We are facing new pandemics, economic inflation and increasingly authoritarian governments who will attempt to crush civil unrest.
“This is a crisis and it needs a crisis response. I want a safe future, not just for my grandchildren but for all children around the world and the generations to come.”
The other Just Stop Oil protester who invaded Court 18 at Wimbledon was Simon Milner-Edwards, 66, a retired musician, from Manchester. He said: “I’m here for my grandchildren and everybody else’s. I’m not prepared to let our politicians wreck everything and leave the next generation to pick up the pieces.
“The last thing I want to do is spoil people’s enjoyment of Wimbledon, but right now, on Centre Court, it’s humanity versus oil and gas – and the umpire is getting every call wrong. How long are we going to take this before we see a McEnroe-level meltdown?”
Speaking on BBC One, Tim Henman, the former player who is now a board member at the All-England Club, said the lapse in security was “frustrating”.
“You prepare as best as you can, but we have the challenge of 18 fields of play, thousands of spectators … it’s frustrating.” Henman said. “We’ve had enough disruptions with the weather, so to have that further disruption – it’s disappointing.”
Security measures have been at unprecedented heights at the All England Lawn and Tennis Club this week as organisers sought to stave off anticipated actions by ecological activists. Questions will now be asked as to the effectiveness of those measures which, on Monday, caused long delays for spectators trying to access the All England Club grounds.