The ATP has announced that the Wimbledon tournament to be played from June 27 to July 10 at the All England Club in London will not distribute points for the men’s circuitafter the organization of the third Grand Slam of the season has prohibited the participation of Russian and Belarusian players for the invasion of Ukraine.
A month has passed since those responsible for the most important tournament played on grass made public the veto against players from Russia and Belarus.
“The possibility that players of any nationality participate in tournaments based on merit and without discrimination It is essential for our Tour. Wimbledon’s decision to ban Russian and Belarusian players from competing in the UK this summer undermines this principle and the integrity of the ATP ranking system.”
The Wimbledon decision is not “Consistent with our classification agreement. Absent a change in circumstances, it is with a heavy heart that we see no other option but to remove the Wimbledon ATP Rankings points for 2022.”
“Our rules and agreements exist to protect the rights of players as a whole. Unilateral decisions of this nature, if not addressed, set a damaging precedent for the rest of the circuit. Discrimination for individual tournaments is simply not feasible on a tour that operates in more than 30 countries,” the ATP statement said.
“We remain hopeful that further discussions with Wimbledon will lead to an outcome acceptable to all concerned. More generally, we believe this matter again highlights the need for a united governance structure across professional tennis so that decisions in this nature can be taken jointly,” adds the note from the ATP, which leaves other tournaments that are played in England out of this decision.
Initially, the 500-tier Queen’s and 250-tier Eastbourne tournament, like other UK Challengers, are not affected by this measure adopted by the ATP and report points to participants.
“We have made this decision on the basis that alternative playing opportunities are open to Russian and Belarusian players in those weeks, unlike Wimbledon, which minimizes any impact on the integrity of the ratings“, justifies the ATP.
“Our condemnation of the devastating Russian invasion of Ukraine remains unequivocal.. Immediate steps were taken to suspend the ATP Tour event in Moscow and have Russian and Belarusian athletes compete under neutral flags on the Tour. In parallel, we have continued our humanitarian support to Ukraine, together with the other governing bodies of tennis, as well as providing direct financial assistance to many affected players.”
Wimbledon announced in April that it would ban Russian or Belarusian tennis players from competing in the grass-court tournament. of the Grand Slam. It is the first time that an individual measure has been adopted against the sports representatives of these countries, which have been marginalized by the war in most team competitions.
