In less than four weeks Justin Gimelstob could find himself permanently removed from the powerful ATP Board.
On May 14th a vote will take place on the future of the former player, who has recently been involved in a high profile criminal case. Gimelstob pleaded no contest to an assault against Randall Kaplan last Halloween. Meaning that he has pleaded neither guilty or not guilty to the allegation, but has accepted the charge nevertheless. Earlier this week, he was slammed with a 60-day community service and a three-year probation. Additionally, he has agreed to attend anger management classes over the next 52 weeks.
The controversy surrounding Gimelstob has led to many calling for him to be removed from his current position as player representative for the ATP. A decision that is up to the player’s council, which is headed by world No.1 Novak Djokovic.
“Justin should have stepped down months ago pending the result of his legal case.” former player and coach Darren Cahill commented on the matter. “Now that the judgement is in, the player council should pick another candidate on May 14 to represent men’s tennis at board level.’
“If contrary information is revealed in the civil case that I’d welcome Justin to run for a board position again, is he so wishes. There’s good in Justin that many people don’t get to see but clearly what happened is unacceptable on so many levels.”
Since the verdict, few players have spoken out about the situation. Rafael Nadal was questioned about the topic at the Barcelona Open, but dodged the question. During one of his press conferences, the Spaniard said ‘the only thing I can do without being in the player council is if somebody ask me from the player council I will give them my personal opinion.’ When asked what his opinion is, Nadal refrained from giving an answer.
Vasek Pospisil is a member of the council. In his original statement sent to tennis.life, the Canadian player backed Gimelstob by saying ‘If he were to run again for that position, myself and the players of the tour would be fortunate to have him for another term.’ However, that part of his statement has since been removed from the website. It is unclear as to why.
“I would like to stay away from commenting on the matters of Justin’s personal life as I am ill-equipped to answer such questions, or make statements on that matter. I will say, however, that Justin has done an incredible job in his position as a player board representative,” he said.
“He has conducted himself with the utmost integrity during the nine months I have been on the council and has fought for the players’ rights.”
Under the current structure, there are 12 members of the ATP council. However, two of those members, coach Dani Valledu and former player Colin Dowdeswell, are ineligible to participate in the upcoming vote.
One council member expected to be on Gimelstob’s side is John Isner, who currently hires him as an unpaid advisor. Isner has not spoken about his mentor since the outcome of the legal case, but he has previously defended him.
“He’s going through a tough time on a lot of fronts,” the world No.10 said in March. “But he’s a very loyal guy, and he goes up against the tournament representatives and goes to bat for us players. He’s stubborn and tenacious. That’s the reason he’s been in the position he’s been in for quite some time.”
Amid the controversy he has been caught up in, there is still a chance that Gimelstob will retain his position on the board. Although Ben Rothenberg has reported that another ex-player with a ‘better career’ than Gimelstob will put their name forward for the position. Giving no mention about who that may be.
“Our sport’s ethics, character, priorities, and spine will be judged. We all get life tested beyond our wildest nightmares. How we react/respond during duress is crucial. Justin failed, and needs to take time to make amends, be of service, and recover. No rush, let’s give it TIME!” 22-time grand slam doubles champion Pam Shriver stated.
The question remains why has somebody that has been caught up in such a high-profile incident managed to keep hold of his position so far? During the legal proceedings, Gimelstob was present and voted at the meeting which ensured the removal on ATP CEO Chris Kermode later this year. According to the man himself, it is simply because he is ‘good at what he does. ‘
“This sounds horrible, but I’m very good at what I do,” he previously told The New York Times. “And that upsets people in our structure. The players know how good I am, especially in terms of improving prize money for them, and that pisses off the tournaments. It annoys them that, even in a compromised state, I’ve been able to outwit, outmaneuver, outstrategize and outmobilize them.”
Gimelstob’s resilience and determination to continue his role is undisputed. The question is will the ATP Player’s council be as willing with the prospect of permantly damaging their reputation at stake.
