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Wimbledon 2022: Russian and Belarusian players banned from tournament


Daniil Medvedev
Daniil Medvedev replaces Novak Djokovic at the top of world rankings for three weeks in 2022

Players from Russia and Belarus will not be allowed to compete at Wimbledon this year because of the invasion of Ukraine.

World number two Daniil Medvedev of Russia and world number four Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus are among the highest ranked players affected.

The All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) said it had a responsibility to “limit Russia’s global influence through the strongest possible means”.

Wimbledon runs from June 27 to July 10.

“In the circumstances of such unjustified and unprecedented military aggression, it would be unacceptable for the Russian regime to derive any benefit from the participation of the Russian or Belarusian parties.” notice from AELTC written.

“Therefore, our intention, with deep regret, is to deny the participation of Russian and Belarusian players to Wimbledon.”

Sabalenka reached the semi-finals of the tournament last year, while Medvedev, who announced as one of the draw starsExternal Links at the on-court warm-up event at ‘s-Hertogenbosch in the Netherlands today, made it to the fourth round.

World No. 15 Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova – person call for war to stopExternal Links earlier this year – and Belarus’s 18th-ranked Victoria Azarenka will also be absent.

Andrey Rublev of Russia is eighth on the men’s standings, with compatriot Karen Khachanov at 26.

Only banned players, which means coaches, referees and physiotherapists can participate in the tournament.

The Lawn Tennis Association has also banned Russian or Belarusian players from competing in any UK grass court tournaments.

They will all still be able to compete at the French Open, which begins in May.

Players from both countries were allowed to compete in tennis tournaments but were not allowed to compete under their national flags.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov criticized the ban.

“Since Russia is a strong tennis nation and our athletes have some of the best features in the world, the tournament itself will be affected by this ban,” he said.

“It is unacceptable for athletes to once again be held hostage by political prejudices, conspiracies and acts of hostility towards our country.”

AELTC, which hosts Wimbledon, consult the government in April on whether to allow players to compete.

AELTC President Ian Hewitt said: “We recognize that this is difficult for the individuals affected and that they will be deeply saddened by the actions of the leaders of the Russian regime.”

“Given the importance of disallowing the use of sport to promote the Russian regime and our broader concern for the safety of the community and players (including families), we I do not believe it is possible to proceed on any other basis at the Championship.”

AELTC is also working to withdraw television rights from broadcasting companies in Russia and Belarus.

While the AELTC statement said the decision could be overturned if “the circumstances change significantly between now and June”, it is considered highly unlikely.

A statement from the LTA said it was important to do all we could to support Ukraine at this time.”

“The LTA believes that tennis must be involved in many other areas of sport and public life in order to send a clear signal to the nations of Russia and Belarus that their actions are the subject of international condemnation.” a written statement.

“The continued participation of citizens of Russia and Belarus at events threatens to fuel these regimes in the face of an unprecedented international effort to isolate them and punish their actions.”

UK sport minister Nigel Huddleston welcomed the “decisive action” by the AELTC and LTA.

“The UK has taken a leading role on the international stage to make it clear that President Putin should not be allowed to use sport to legitimize Russia’s barbaric invasion of Ukraine. Individual staff is a complex issue that will divide public opinion, there is a larger cause at stake.”

Culture Minister Nadine Dorries added: “This decision means that Putin will not use the most iconic slam in tennis to try to legitimize the horrors he is inflicting on the world. the people of Ukraine. A country moving in the right direction.”

However, WTA head Steve Simon told BBC Sport in March that he did not believe that players from the two countries should be banned from the tournament.

Russia was previously banned from defending the Davis Cup and Billie Jean King Cup team titles after country’s invasion of Ukraine – a military operation supported by Belarus.

The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) and the Men’s Association (ATP) have suspended the combined event scheduled to take place in Moscow in October.

The International Tennis Federation (ITF) has also canceled its events in the country.

‘Sometimes silence is a betrayal’

Ukrainian world number 25 Elina Svitolina released a lengthy statement on Wednesday, calling on tennis governing bodies to take a harsher stance against athletes from Russia and Belarus.

Svitolina took a break from sports to deal with a back problem and the emotional impact the invasion had on her.

She posted on social media calling on the ATP, WTA and ITF to ask the Russian and Belarusian tennis players if they support the war, the military operations in Ukraine or the regimes of the Russian and Belarusian presidents Vladimir Putin and Alexander Lukashenko or not.

“If possible, we request the exclusion and ban of any Russian and Belarusian athletes from competing in any event,” she wrote.

“In times of crisis, silence means agreeing with what is happening.

“There will come a time when silence is treacherous, and that is now.”

Olga Savchuk, who coached Ukraine in last week’s Billie Jean King Cup match against the US, said that Russian players should be banned from playing.

“It can’t just be a punitive measure against 90% of the Russian people and 10% not”, Savchuk told the New York Times.External Links

“It has to be even and I think it’s collective sin.”

Former world number 13 Ukrainian Alexandr Dolgopolov thanked Wimbledon for “lifting the step and showing the world an example”.

“I believe that Russia should be isolated in every way possible, and that the Russian people must deal with this,” he told BBC Sport.

Analysis

This is a decision that sets the All England Club and LTA apart from the crowd.

In general, not in the field of sports, as athletics, badminton, canoeing and rowing are prohibited individual athletes from Russia and Belarus.

But in tennis, the initial French Open roster was announced in the presence of these players, and both the WTA and ATP Tour felt it was important to prevent these individuals from continuing their careers. equal.

There could be some movement from Roland Garros after the second round of Sunday’s French presidential election, but the approach in tennis so far has been to ban Russian teams but let individuals compete – despite the national Their citizenship is removed from the scoreboard and ranking list.

So far, the majority of players have remained satisfied with this stance, but given the scale of what is happening in Ukraine and taking into account the sentiments of the British public, AELTC feels they have no choice.

And this with the possibility of legal influence in mind. For example, the LTA has contracts with the ATP and WTA for turf events they host at venues like Queen’s and Eastbourne in June.





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