Reilly Opelka has dismissed the ATP's pledge to reduce players' carbon emissions as a PR stunt.
In recent months, the ATP has increased its involvement in reducing carbon emissions in men's tennis. First, the governing body signed up for the United Nations Sports for Climate Action initiative, which works with sports clubs and organisations with the aim of achieving net zero by 2040.
In addition, the ATP recently announced its launch of the Carbon Tracker app, which is currently being used by some ATP players, including Dominic Thiem, Cameron Norrie, Andrey Rublev, and Emil Ruusuvuori. But, despite the ATP's recent moves towards reducing emissions, not everyone has been impressed, with Opelka taking to his Instagram story to call the moves 'PR'.
“ATP schedule: Australia, USA, Europe, USA, UK, USA, Asia, Europe. Good PR play tho."
Opelka's post highlighted the issue of travel on the ATP and WTA Tours as players regularly travel to almost every continent throughout the season. On the ATP Tour, around 250 events take place each year in 50 different countries, which can have an environmental impact, as well as a psychological and physical drain on some players.
Besides the frequent long-haul travel across the globe, the ATP has other environmental factors to consider as the governing body aims to get to net zero emissions by 2040. Other environmental challenges include the widespread food waste at competitions and spectator travel to and from tournaments across one to two weeks at a time.
Without long-term tracking of player travel and the impact on the environment, it is difficult to judge how much of a carbon output tennis players have as a whole. Ultimately, the ATP's recent ventures and commitments showcase the first step towards achieving a long-term goal of becoming a more environmentally responsible sport.
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