Organisers of the legendary Wimbledon tournament decides a few weeks ago that the 2022 edition of the event will take place without the participation of any players from Russia and Belarus. 

This controversial decision has not been appreciated by the ATP tour officials. „The ability for players of any nationality to enter tournaments based on merit, and without discrimination, is fundamental to our tour […] The decision by Wimbledon to ban Russian and Belarusian players from competing in the UK this summer undermines this principle and the integrity of the ATP Ranking system. […] It is also inconsistent with our rankings agreement. Absent a change in circumstances, it is with great regret and reluctance that we see no option but to remove ATP Ranking points from Wimbledon for 2022,” reads a statement issued by ATP.

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„Our rules and agreements exist in order to protect the rights of players as a whole. Unilateral decisions of this nature, if unaddressed, set a damaging precedent for the rest of the tour […] Discrimination by individual tournaments is simply not viable on a tour that operates in more than 30 countries,” the statement adds. 

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“We […] wish to state our deep disappointment at the decisions taken by the ATP, WTA and ITF in removing ranking points for The Championships. We believe these decisions to be disproportionate in the context of the exceptional and extreme circumstances of this situation and the position we found ourselves in, and damaging to all players who compete on Tour […] We are considering our options, and we are reserving our position at this stage. We are also in discussion with our Grand Slam colleagues,” Wimbledon organisers replied in a statement.

This is the first time that such measures have been taken.

Image: Twitter @Wimbledon

Author: Sébastien Meuwissen