Almost a year and a half without change.
When Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, tennis separated by the men’s ATP and women’s WTA tours Tennis federations of Russia and Belarus for an indefinite period. At the same time, countries were banned from participating in international team competitions and all tournaments in those countries were cancelled.
However, tennis players from Russia and Belarus were allowed “for the time being” to participate in the ATP and WTA tours as neutral players without country codes. The decision was made public five days after the start of the attack on March 1, 2022. The lineup hasn’t been updated that much.
– The war should not be forgotten, nor this issue, which unfortunately is still acute, former top tennis player Jarkko Nieminen hurts Urheilu.
The alignment of the grand tours needs updating
Not everyone accepted the ATP and WTA’s decision, but very few have dared to cross paths with the giant tours. In March 2022, the British tennis association LTA and the major tournament Wimbledon refused to allow Russians and Belarusians to play in the tournament “in order to limit Russia’s global influence”. ATP and WTA knocked out decision as discriminatory and reacted by giving British organizations almost two million euros in fines.
This year, the major tours adopted even tougher measures to protect Russian and Belarusian players. According to The Guardian The ATP and WTA threatened to shelve all tennis events in Great Britain if the exclusion of players continued.
A startled LTA and Wimbledon organizer the All England Club (AELTC) reversed their decision and allowed players to take part in Wimbledon in July 2023 on the condition that they sign a neutrality agreement.
– There is not much talk about it in tennis circles, although it surely worries many people, Nieminen reflects.
A few other tournament organizers swimming against the current have been seen. Most recently, at the end of July, Russian and Belarusian players were denied entry to the Prague Open tennis tournament in the Czech Republic.
However, the majority of the countries’ tennis federations and tournament organizers have kept the rumblings to themselves in order to avoid difficulties. According to Nieminen, the right of Russian and Belarusian players to participate in tournaments should be reconsidered.
– Should we think about this again, of course. However, the parties making the decisions cannot go back and forth all the time. Organizations have to take a certain line and go with it for a longer period of time. It is important that the issue is discussed, even if policies are not changed all the time, says Nieminen.
Divided opinions
The players are also divided into two camps regarding the matter. According to the NY Times many top players like Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadalhave condemned the war, but at the same time said that Russians and Belarusians should be allowed to play.
Number one in the women’s world rankings Iga Swiatek on the other hand, was disappointed by Wimbledon’s bending. He uttered Politico and Reuters that tennis sends the wrong message to the world, adding that “we could do this better”.
The Russians are among the top players in the world Daniil Medvedev (rank 3 in the world list), Andrei Rublev (rank 8) and Daria Kasatkina (rank 13) are openly opposed to the war. Instead, a Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka (2nd place) has stated ambiguously that he cannot support the president of his country Alexander Lukashenko “right now”.
In Finland, the Russians’ right to play came up again when Emil Ruusuvuori picked up one of the best wins of his career against Rublev early on Wednesday. Rublev has been one of the most active Russian tennis stars.
– I can’t act as if nothing happened, because this is terrible. It’s crazy that so many ordinary citizens are suffering and dying. It’s just not easy, Rublev said on the Tennis Infinity website.
Over the course of the summer, the meeting of the warring parties on the tennis court has made headlines. Several tournaments have seen situations where Ukrainians, Russians and Belarusians have not shaken hands with each other. In Nieminen’s opinion, not all players can take as much of a stand as they would like.
– In one way or another, many players have opened up about how much the whole situation is straining the athletes. Even if you don’t shake hands, you might nod and thus respect the match itself, says Nieminen.
Olympic status still unclear
International Olympic Committee (IOC) your line at the end of July, that Russia and Belarus will not be invited to the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. Individual athletes are allowed to compete without country codes in sports that allow it for their part.
The reason for the decision is to ensure the “safety and fairness” of the Olympics. The UN Human Rights Council’s strong statement towards the IOC, according to which the exclusion of Russian and Belarusian athletes from the Olympics would be discriminatory and a blatant violation of human rights, is also likely to weigh in the balance.
The International Tennis Federation has not yet made a decision about the Olympics. The union still has plenty of time, as the Olympic places are decided according to the June 2024 world rankings.
According to Forbes, as many as 35 countries expressed that they do not want Russian or Belarusian athletes to participate in the Olympics.
Sources: ATP tour, Politico, Reuters, Independent, Guardian, Forbers, AP, NY Times