Wimbledon Bans Russia, Belarus Players Including Medvedev; ATP, WTA Object

By Barry Janoff

April 20, 2022: In March, following Russia’s armed invasion of Ukraine, with aid from Belarus, numerous agencies and federations worldwide imposed strict sanctions on athletes from Russia and Belarus.

Among them, tennis governing bodies International Tennis Federation, ATP and WTA allowed athletes to play in events, but without flags, banners, markings or other references to their respective nations.

The organizers of the Wimbledon tennis tournament today have taken the significant move of banning athletes from Russia and Belarus altogether from participating in the upcoming Grand Slam event.

The decision impacts players including ATP No. 2 ranked Daniil Medvedev, Andrey Rublev, Karen Khachanov and Aslan Karatsev; and WTA players Victoria Azarenka, Aryna Sabalenka, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Daria Kasatkina, Veronika Kudermetova, Ekaterina Alexandrova, Aliaksandra Sasnovich and Liudmila Samsonova.

“Given the profile of The Championships in the United Kingdom and around the world, it is our responsibility to play our part in the widespread efforts of Government, industry, sporting and creative institutions to limit Russia’s global influence through the strongest means possible,” the All England Lawn Tennis Club and the Committee of Management of The Championships said via the organization.

“It is therefore our intention, with deep regret, to decline entries from Russian and Belarusian players to The Championships 2022.”

In separate statements, the ATP and WTA both condemned the move by AELTC to ban the athletes.

Wimbledon 2022 is scheduled for June 27-July 10.

Athletes from Russia and Belarus were also banned from the recent Paralympic Winter Games in Tokyo.

According to AELTC, “We wish to express our ongoing support for all those impacted by the conflict in Ukraine during these shocking and distressing times.

“We share in the universal condemnation of Russia’s illegal actions and have carefully considered the situation in the context of our duties to the players, to our community and to the broader UK public as a British sporting institution. We have also taken into account guidance set out by the UK Government specifically in relation to sporting bodies and events.”

AELTC also said, “If circumstances change materially between now and June, we will consider and respond accordingly.”

The Lawn Tennis Assn., the governing body for tennis in Great Britain, said it was supporting the position taken by Wimbledon organizers.

"After careful consideration, the LTA believes that tennis must join many other areas of sport and public life in sending a clear signal to the Russian and Belarusian states that their actions in Ukraine are the subject of international condemnation," LTA said via the organization.

"This decision, alongside that of the AELTC, also means that British tennis is delivering a consistent approach across all events over the course of the summer."

Organizers for the Roland Garros Grand Slam tournament in Paris, scheduled for May 22-June 5, are currently following the sanctions imposed by the ITF, ATP and WTA, allowing players from Russia and Belarus to complete but without any recognition of their respective nations.

The U.S. Open Grand Slam, scheduled in New York Aug. 29-Sept. 11, is also currently following the ITF, ATP and WTA sanctions.

In March, the international governing bodies of tennis said they stood “united in our condemnation of Russia’s actions and, as a result, are in agreement with the following decisions and actions:

• The WTA and ATP Boards have made the decision to suspend the WTA/ATP combined event, scheduled this October in Moscow.

• The ITF Board voted to suspend the Russian Tennis Federation and Belarus Tennis Federation membership and to withdraw their entries from all ITF international team competition until further notice. This action follows the cancellation of all ITF tournaments in Russia and Belarus indefinitely.

• At this time, players from Russia and Belarus will continue to be allowed to compete in international tennis events on Tour and at the Grand Slams. However, they will not compete under the name or flag of Russia or Belarus until further notice.

The two nations were previously excluded from this year’s Billie Jean King Cup and Davis Cup competitions by the ITF in February shortly after attacks in Ukraine began.

According to today's ATP statement:

"We strongly condemn Russia’s reprehensible invasion of Ukraine and stand in solidarity with the millions of innocent people affected by the ongoing war.

"Our sport is proud to operate on the fundamental principles of merit and fairness, where players compete as individuals to earn their place in tournaments based on the ATP Rankings.

"We believe that today’s unilateral decision by Wimbledon and the LTA to exclude players from Russia and Belarus from this year’s British grass-court swing is unfair and has the potential to set a damaging precedent for the game.

"Discrimination based on nationality also constitutes a violation of our agreement with Wimbledon that states that player entry is based solely on ATP Rankings. Any course of action in response to this decision will now be assessed in consultation with our Board and Member councils.

"It is important to stress that players from Russia and Belarus will continue to be allowed to compete at ATP events under a neutral flag, a position that has until now been shared across professional tennis. In parallel, we will continue our joint humanitarian support for Ukraine under Tennis Plays for Peace."

According to today's WTA statement:

"The WTA strongly condemns the actions that have been taken by Russia and its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine. We continue our humanitarian relief efforts to support Ukraine through Tennis Plays for Peace.

"We are, however, very disappointed in today’s announcement by the AELTC and the LTA to ban individual athletes who are from Russia and Belarus from competing in the upcoming UK grass court events.

"A fundamental principal of the WTA is that individual athletes may participate in professional tennis events based on merit and without any form of discrimination. That principle is expressly set forth in our rules and has been agreed to by both AELTC and LTA.

"Prohibitions against discrimination are also clearly expressed in their own rules and the Grand Slam rules.

"As the WTA has consistently stated, individual athletes should not be penalized or prevented from competing due to where they are from, or the decisions made by the governments of their countries.

"Discrimination, and the decision to focus such discrimination against athletes competing on their own as individuals, is neither fair nor justified.

"The WTA will continue to apply its rules to reject discrimination and ensure that all athletes are able to compete at our Tour events should they qualify to do so, a position that until today’s announcement has been shared across professional tennis.

"The WTA will be evaluating its next steps and what actions may be taken regarding these decisions."

“We recognize that this is hard on the individuals affected, and it is with sadness that they will suffer for the actions of the leaders of the Russian regime,” Ian Hewitt, AELTC chairman, said via the organization.

"We have very carefully considered the alternative measures that might be taken within the UK Government guidance but, given the high profile environment of The Championships, the importance of not allowing sport to be used to promote the Russian regime and our broader concerns for public and player (including family) safety, we do not believe it is viable to proceed on any other basis at The Championships.”

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