It appears that a reported move by Wimbledon to ban Russian and Belarusian players from playing at the Grand Slam is on the verge of being officially confirmed.
Within the past 24 hours Sportico and The New York Times have quoted unnamed sources saying that a ban will be implemented by the All England Club in response to the Ukrainian war. Russia launched what they called a ‘special operation’ on February 24th and Belarus is accused of supporting their military action. Prompting widespread condemnation and sanctions being imposed on those countries.
Until now tennis has refrained from banning players from participating and instead implemented their own rules. Including forcing the likes of Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev to play as neutral players. Furthermore, the federations have been suspended from team competitions by the ITF.
Prior to any official announcement being made on the matter, Russian tennis and government officials have already spoken out. Some are implying that the reports concerning Wimbledon are true, including the president of the Russian Tennis Federation, Shamil Tarpischev.
“We can’t do anything. I consider this decision wrong, but nothing can be changed here: the owner is a gentleman. The Tennis Federation has already done everything it could. I do not want to talk about this topic, everything I say will go against the athletes. From my words, the athletes only get worse. We are working on this situation, that’s all I can say,” Tarpischev told sport-express.ru.
Dmitry Svishchev is a deputy of the State Duma, the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia. He is currently serving as the Chairman of the State Duma Committee for Physical Culture and Sports. Reaching to the news concerning Wimbledon, Svishchev claims that the decision is motivated by ‘politics and money’ and branded Britain as ‘anti-Russian.’
“Great Britain is known for its vivid anti-Russian statements and position not only today, but always. Now we see complete hysteria in relation to athletes as well. We are well aware that the World Tennis Federation, in principle, allows our tennis players to participate under the auspices of the federation. Another thing is that Wimbledon, the oldest tournament in the world, lives by its own rules and principles,” he told RIA Novosti, a news agency run by the Russian government.
“This decision has nothing to do with sports. It’s politics and money. This is what rules Wimbledon now.” He added.
Svishchev has been sanctioned by both the United States and Great Britain in reponse to the Ukrainian war.
It is unclear as to when an official announcement will be made. Currently there are 12 female and five male players from Russia and Belarus currently ranked in the world’s top 100.
