Tennis players from Russia and Belarus will not be allowed to play at Wimbledon this year due to the war in Ukraine, the All England Club announced on Wednesday.
Among the prominent men affected by the ban are current US Open champion Daniil Medvedev, who recently reached No. 1 in the ATP rankings and is currently No. 2 and No. 8 Andrei Rublev. Affected women’s toys include No. 4 Arina Sabalenka, who was a Wimbledon semifinalist last year; Victoria Azarenka, former No. 1 winner of the Australian Open twice; and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, runner-up at last year’s French Open.
Medvedev, Rublev and Pavlyuchenkova are from Russia; Sabalenka and Azarenka are from Belarus.
Wimbledon starts on June 27. The All England Club confirmed in March that it was discussing with the British government whether the Russians should be able to play in the Grand Slam tournament on grass.
“It is our responsibility to play our part in widespread efforts … to limit Russia’s global influence through the strongest possible means,” the All England Club said in a statement, first posted on Twitter. “In the circumstances of such unjustified and unprecedented military aggression, it would be unacceptable for the Russian regime to reap any benefits from the participation of Russian or Belarusian players in The Championships.
Russian athletes have been prevented from competing in many sports since their country’s invasion of Ukraine. Belarus helped Russia in the war.
Football, figure skating and athletics have banned Russian and Belarusian athletes and teams from competing because of the war. Russia’s men’s national football team was knocked out of last month’s World Cup qualifiers, forcing them to miss a chance to reach this year’s tournament in Qatar.
Wednesday’s move signaled the first time a tennis tournament has told players from Russia and Belarus they are not welcome.
The seven teams that run the sport around the world decided on March 1st that players from those countries would be eligible to compete in WTA, ATP and Grand Slam tournaments, but not under the name or flag of Russia or Belarus. These two nations were also expelled from the Billy Jean King Cup and Davis Cup team competitions; Russia was the reigning champion in both.
Allowed to compete in the French Open
The French Open, which starts on May 22nd, will be the first Grand Slam tournament since Russia invaded Ukraine in February and is expected to allow Russian and Belarusian players to compete.
The All England Club said that if “circumstances change significantly from now until June”, it will “respond accordingly”.
“We acknowledge that this is difficult for those affected and will grieve over the actions of the leaders of the Russian regime,” said All England Club President Ian Hewitt.
“We have very carefully considered the alternative measures that could be taken under the guidelines of the United Kingdom government, but given the high-ranking environment of the championship, the importance of not allowing the use of sport to promote the Russian regime and our wider concern the public and the player [including family] safety, we do not believe it is viable to continue on any other basis in The Championships. “
Some current and former Ukrainian tennis players – including two-time Grand Slam semifinalist Elina Svitolina and recently retired Sergei Stakhovsky – posted a statement on Twitter Wednesday calling on the WTA, ATP and the International Tennis Federation to ask players supporting Russia and Belarus. in Ukraine.
“In times of crisis, silence means agreeing with what is happening,” the statement said. “We have noticed that some Russian and Belarusian players vaguely mention the war at one point, but never make it clear that Russia and Belarus started it on Ukrainian territory.
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