In response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Russian and Belarusian players will not be allowed to compete at Wimbledon this year, following advice from the U.K. government. Wimbledon is without a doubt the most prestigious tennis tournament in the world. The Russian government has been known to use sporting events and the success of their athletes as propaganda. With this in mind, Wimbledon wanted to avoid the possibility of a player from Russia or Belarus holding the trophy at the end of the tournament. Some notable players that will be affected are Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev, both top ten ranked men in the world, and Aryna Sabalenka, ranked number seven in the women’s rankings. In a statement from the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), the men’s body said it could “set a damaging precedent for the game.” Adding that “discrimination based on nationality also constitutes a violation of our agreement with Wimbledon that states that player entry is based solely on ATP rankings.” The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) said it was “very disappointed.”
The disagreement over how to navigate the complex situation of politics and sport has divided the tennis world. High profile names criticized Wimbledon. Men’s world number one Novak Djokovic called the the decision “crazy” and Martina Navratilova, who won a record nine Wimbledon singles titles, said excluding Russian and Belarusian players was “not the way to go.” On the other hand, Ukrainian world number 25 Elina Svitolina supported the decision and has called for a ban on all Russian and Belarusian athletes from competing in all tennis events.
The ATP and WTA, who award ranking points to tournaments, made the decision to strip Wimbledon of ranking points. Players will not be rewarded with an increased world ranking for going further in the tournament. Djokovic, the defending champion, will lose his number one ranking after the tournament. This has created a rather awkward and ironic situation where Russia’s Daniil Medvedev will become the new men’s world number one.
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