Tennis legend Martina Navratilova was denied entry to a cafe in Wimbledon, England, because of her pet dog. The 18-time Grand Slam champion shared a picture of herself standing outside The Ivy Cafe in Wimbledon with her dog Lulu resting in a bag she carried on her shoulder.
The former World No. 1 revealed that she was not allowed to enter the cafe due to her dog, forcing her to resort to “plan B” – which was presumably to eat somewhere else.
“Well- tried to have dinner at the Ivy at Wimbledon, but they won’t allow Lulu into the restaurant- so plan B,” wrote Navratilova, who has been covering the tennis tournament for BBC.
Martina Navratilova divides opinion
Her post divided opinion on X, where it has garnered more than 1 million views. In the comments section, many people applauded the 68-year-old for not dropping her name or pulling rank to get in. Some sided with the eatery, saying nobody should be allowed entry with pets.
{{/usCountry}}Her post divided opinion on X, where it has garnered more than 1 million views. In the comments section, many people applauded the 68-year-old for not dropping her name or pulling rank to get in. Some sided with the eatery, saying nobody should be allowed entry with pets.
{{/usCountry}}“Ew. People, please stop trying to take your dogs where people purchase and eat food. Thank you,” wrote one X user, to whom the tennis legend replied: “She is on the floor. Get over it”.
“Well done to the staff that must have had tremendous pressure on them to make the rules apply to everyone, knowing full well who you are,” another person wrote.
To this, Navratilova replied saying the Ivy staff had no idea who she was.
“You are such a class act…..how many people who aren’t nowhere near as legendary as you are would have tried to pull rank?” an X user wrote.
“Martina cannot be in? Becuase of Lulu? @Wimbledon please fix this. Martina should be allowed in any place of this universe where the word tennis is recognised…” another said.