The USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center has hosted the US Open for the past 48 years.
This year’s event drew a record-breaking number of more than 1.14 million people, who came to witness players like Coco Gauff, Frances Tiafoe, Serena Williams, Tommy Paul and more in action.
Despite the tournament’s success, it hasn’t been without complaints, including some about disruptive content creators and even high ticket prices.
Another unanticipated issue that fans pointed out had to do with the odor inside of the center’s Arthur Ashe Stadium.
On Monday, Sept. 7, a TikToker who goes by @baylorcarrots alleged that the stadium smelled horribly and shared a first-hand view of how other attendees reacted to the funk.
In the clip, the woman is seen sitting in the stands and holding her nose, before panning the camera over to other guests sitting next to her, who also kept their nostrils covered.
It’s not clear which match she attended, but she tagged Belarusian player Aryna Sabalenka in the caption—which could indicate she was at one of her matches.
“When it smells like human waste and the US Open has known about it for days, yet continues to allow people to sit in Section 310,” the woman wrote in the caption, adding the trending saxophone audio to the clip.
The saxophone sound stands as an indicator that something bad or tragic is either about to happen or already happening.
A closer look at the clip shows that even a few guests sitting in the row behind her were blocking their noses from the stench.
The TikToker further complained about the facility in the caption, writing, “The Facilities Team and Guest Services told us they were already aware of the issue, but people were still being allowed to sit in the affected section. We paid to attend the US Open and should not have to sit for hours in an area that smells like human waste.”
She ended her rant with the question: “How is this acceptable?” Fans shared their thoughts about the incident under her video.
One person wrote, “If you can smell it, particles are actually getting in your nose.”
A second typed, “Ain’t no way I could deal. I have a nose like a basset hound. That would have made me so sick.”
Another person who attended and sat nearby said, “We were in section 308 and the smell was unbearable.”
She continued asking the TikToker, “Did you get refunded? I’ve gotten no response.”
The content creator @baylorcarrots responded, “No!! We reached out to multiple people and have gotten no response….”
A fourth attendee said, “It was terrible in that section yesterday. Eyes on fire.”
From the creator’s video and other online users’ responses, the smell seemed to linger in specific sections near 310.
Tournament organizers have yet to make a public statement addressing the foul smell that disturbed many fans.
Interestingly, Sabalenka also raised an issue about a smell.
The world No. 1-ranked player paused her third-round match against Uzbekistan’s Kamilla Rakhimova after catching a whiff of a scent she didn’t particularly like.
During her opening set at the Louis Armstrong Stadium, Sabalenka she stopped midgame and told the empire that she could smell cannabis.
“Someone is smoking weed, so do you mind … because it’s so strong,” the 28-year-old said.
The umpire then notified the tournament officials, and Sabalenka was later asked about it at the press conference.
She said, “I was like, guys, you can do whatever, you can smoke whatever, you can relax as much as you can, but please, do not do it around the tennis courts.”
“It’s a bit tricky to handle that smell and perform at your best,” she said after winning the match. She even admitted that she wasn’t sure if the smell was from inside or outside since it was windy.
In a statement, the USTA spokesperson said their employees continue to work to maintain a smoke-free environment on the grounds of the tennis center.
“This includes enforcement by our security and guest services teams when they are made aware of any individual that may be smoking, making them aware that although it may be legal in NY, that smoking is not permitted on parks property including the tennis center,” they said.
While complaints of a marijuana smell have occurred in past years at the US Open, this appears to be the first time that attendees have complained of a sewage odor.
