The information had leaked early in the morning, revealed by the New York Times And the site Sporty. It was made official later in the day, Wednesday April 20, by a long press release: Russian and Belarusian players will be prohibited from participating in the 2022 edition of the Wimbledon tournament (June 27 to July 10), the English stage of the Tennis grand slam.
“We would like to express our unconditional support to all those affected by the conflict in Ukraine, writes the All England Club press release. We share universal condemnation of Russia's illegal actions and have carefully reviewed the situation in the context of our duties to players, our community and the public at large. It is our responsibility to play our part in the efforts of Government, industry and sport to limit Russian influence by the strongest means possible. In the circumstances of an unprecedented and unjustified military aggression, it would be unacceptable for the Russian regime to derive any benefit from the presence of Russian and Belarusian players in the Tournament. It is therefore with great regret that we will refuse the registrations of Russian and Belarusian players in the 2022 Tournament.”
The British organizers also specify: their decision to ban players from the two countries could be reviewed if the “ circumstances change radically by June.”
Beyond just the political gesture, the position of the British organizers, largely influenced by the government of Boris Johnson, will have very visible sporting consequences. No less than 16 players from the two countries currently appear in the ATP and WTA world Top 100: 4 Russian men and 9 players, 3 Belarusian players. Among them, Daniil Medvedev, the world No. 2, and Andrey Rublev (No. 8) among the men, Aryna Sabalenka (No. 4, semi-finalist last year), Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (No. 15), and Viktoria Azarenka (n°18) women’s side.
The Russian authorities reacted without nuance to the decision of the Wimbledon tournament. “ Once again, they are making athletes hostage to political prejudices and political intrigue., declared Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, even before the official announcement. This is unacceptable"
With this decision, Wimbledon stands out. Until then, tennis had chosen to deal with the issue of the conflict in Ukraine in its own way, marginal in the Olympic movement. Certainly, Russia and Belarus had been excluded by the International Federation (ITF) from the two team competitions, the Davis Cup and the Billie Jean King Cup. And the tournaments planned in both countries were deleted from the calendar. But players were accepted on an individual basis on the circuit, subject to appearing under a neutral banner.
The British stand out, therefore. But ultimately they are only joining the very large camp of authorities or organizers having chosen to follow the recommendation of the IOC, expressed shortly after the start of the conflict, to ban Russians and Belarusians from international competitions.
Everywhere else in the Olympic movement, their exclusion was welcomed. In tennis, she is criticized, even severely condemned.
The ATP attacked first. The men's professional tennis organization estimated in a press release that "theDiscrimination based on nationality is a violation of our agreements with Wimbledon whereby a player's participation is based solely on their ranking. We will now analyze the follow-up to be given to this decision“. The ATP suggests it without saying it outright: it could take the matter to court.
Its female counterpart, the WTA, also did not hold back its words in criticizing the British decision. She declared “ very disapointed", considering that such exclusion is " neither fair nor justified“. The WTA explains that it is also thinking about “ actions she can take » to reverse the decision.
Such a controversy raises questions. It raises the question of the position of tennis in the Olympic movement. Since the IOC's recommendation, made at the end of February, the exclusion of Russian and Belarusian athletes from international competitions has been hailed as a justified response to the invasion of Ukraine. In swimming, where swimmers from both countries were initially accepted under neutral status, several countries even threatened to boycott the next World Championships if FINA did not toughen its position.
Wimbledon organizers are just following suit. But they are singled out. Novak Djokovic, the world number 1, called “ fuck » their decision to ban Russian and Belarusian players.
