Wimbledon plans to ban Russians and Belarusians from participating

According to the British newspaper The Times, tennis player Daniil Medvedev, currently number two in the world, may not participate in Wimbledon this year. Organizers want to exclude Russian and Belarusian players due to Belarus-backed Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Since the start of the Russian offensive on February 24, Russian and Belarusian tennis players have been able to continue participating in ATP and WTA competitions with a neutral flag.

This provision should be extended to the three Grand Slam tournaments to be played in 2022, even though the International Federation (ITF) has banned teams from both countries from participating in the Davis Cup and the Billie Jean King Cup (formerly Federation Cup).

It would be “unacceptable” to ban Russian tennis players from participating in the Wimbledon tennis tournament, the Kremlin said on Wednesday, reacting to reports in the British press.

“Once again, they make sportsmen hostages of political prejudice, of political intrigue,” declared Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov.

Some sources told the Times that, after two months of talks, Wimbledon organizers preferred to ban Russian and Belarusian players from participating rather than adhering to a compromise solution proposed by the British government.

The talks sought players, including Medvedev and Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka, a semi-finalist in the women’s singles at Wimbledon last year, to sign a declaration that they would not make favorable comments to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Wimbledon organizers reckon that signing such declarations could have a negative impact on the players’ families.

This exclusion measure is likely to apply to all British grass tournaments this year. The Lawn Tennis Association (LTA), which oversees major Wimbledon preparation tournaments such as Queen’s and Eastbourne, has said it will follow Wimbledon’s lead.