opposition from players, possible sanctions from the ATP and the WTA… What you need to know about the exclusion of Russian and Belarusian players from the tournament

There will be no Russian and Belarusian players on the quiet courts of Wimbledon from June 27 to July 10. Due to the war in Ukraine and in agreement with the British government, the organizers have decided to exclude some of the best tennis players in the world, including the world number 2 Daniil Medvedev and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, fifteenth. A first in the ATP and WTA circuits.

The two institutions have already resisted and could face sanctions against the tournament in the coming days. Summary of a situation where politics takes precedence over sportsmanship.

From “guarantees” the Russians have asked for to their exclusion, Wimbledon is hitting hard

“Under the circumstances of unjustified and unprecedented military aggression, it would be unacceptable for the Russian regime to take any advantage of the participation of Russian or Belarusian players”explains the All England Lawn Tennis Club in a press release. “We therefore intend, with great regret, to reject the registration of Russian and Belarusian players at Wimbledon.”

The British government originally planned to give the Russians ‘assurance’ that they would not support Vladimir Putin, but the tournament went even further. The organizers have therefore decided to exclude Russian and Belarusian players from the tournament. There will be no exceptions, not even for world number 2 Daniil Medvedev. Andrey Rublev (8th), Karen Khachanov (26th), Aslan Karatsev (30th) are also concerned. Among the women, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (15th), Daria Kasatkina (26th), Veronika Kudermetova (29th), Liudmila Samsonova (31st) will also not be able to line up.

Statement regarding Russian and Belarusian individuals at the 2022 Championships.

— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) Apr 20, 2022

The ATP and WTA can take sanctions against the tournament

Until now, the ATP and WTA tournaments had been content to impose a neutral banner. Russian and Belarusian players have already been banned from team competitions. the WTA declared himself “very disappointed” of the Wimbledon announcement that it believes that “neither fair nor justified”†

“We are very disappointed with Wednesday’s announcement (…) Athletes should not be punished or banned from participating in competitions, depending on where they come from and according to the decisions taken by the governments of their countries.be on the ATP in a communicated† Discrimination based on nationality is also a violation of our agreements with Wimbledon, where a player’s participation is based solely on their ranking.”adds the text.

The two institutions will meet in Madrid to consider possible sanctions against the tournament. This way they could get the points from their ranking at Wimbledon†

Russian players are against the decision

The Russian Andrey Rublev estimated on Thursday 24 April that this exclusion used to be “totally discriminatory”† “The reasons why they [Wimbledon] gave us had, how do you say, no sense, they didn’t make sense”said the world number 8 on the sidelines of the ATP 250 tournament in Belgrade. “Giving tournament prizes to humanitarian aid, to families who are suffering, to children who are suffering, that would have a bit of an impact”added the player who wrote “No war please” on a television camera during a match in Dubai just after the invasion. “For me it is the most important tournament in the world. And for me it is also special because I played there in the quarter-finals last season”, stated for his part Karen Khachanov, 26th player in the world.

The Belarusian Tennis Federation, for its part, said in a statement on Thursday that this decision is only a“incitement to hatred and intolerance”† The Kremlin called the decision “unacceptable” and call his athletes“hostages of political prejudice”†

Divided reactions within the tennis community

In a statement, together with other Ukrainian players published on her social networks, former world No. 5, Elina Svitolina, called for the exclusion from the professional tennis circuits of all Russians and Belarusians who do not publicly oppose the conflict.† “It is important to us that there are no murderers of our country among us.” The old 13^and world, Alex Dolgopolov, has already returned to Kiev for a few weeks to defend his country, also commented on his Twitter account. “Silence, or simply saying ‘no war’ is no longer enough. The Russian people must condemn this mass murder of civilians.”