September 06-13
Much to the amazement of just about everyone, Iranian tennis referee Adel Borghei got his legal mess with the US government straightened out in only 10 days and he was able to fulfill a long-time dream, by refereeing at the US Open.
Borghei missed the first five days of the two-week Open, but he was there Saturday, making line calls along with other referees.
Published news reports said Borghei was a victim of US sanctions. But the actual problem was that he arrived in the United States on a visitor’s visa, which does not permit the holder—Iranian or otherwise—to work in the US.
Borghei, 32, was staying with a friend in Florida hoping that the bureaucratic snafu would be straightened out in time for him to referee at least a few matches at the tennis open.
But he had given up hope and was in the process of making flight reservations to return to Iran when the word came down that all was now fixed in the bureaucratic paper world and he could work at the Open.
“I feel I am part of the team now,” he told The New York Times Saturday at Louis Armstrong Stadium in New York City. “That story is done. Now I’m looking forward to the next day. I have to do a good job here.”
Borghei has refereed at tennis matches all around the world, including seven Wimbledon events. But he had never refereed in the United States. Last May, he received an invitation to work at the US Open.