The Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) has been fined the sum of £820,000 by the Association of Tennis Players (ATP) for banning players of Russian and Belarusian nationality from participating in events this year.
The said ban was imposed following the Russian invasion of Ukraine earlier this year. A similar ban was imposed by the All England Club (AELTC). This led to players like Daniil Medvedev and Victoria Azarenka missing the Wimbledon Championship and other lawn tennis events.
Other sports had taken action against players of Russian and Belarusian nationality, including suspension and bans from the event.
The ATP, which allowed Russian and Belarusian players to compete but under neutral flags, also said that the LTA could lose its ATP membership next year if they took a similar decision.
The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) had also fined the LTA £615,067 after some of its members missed lawn tennis events.
Reacting to the fine by the ATP, the LTA, in a statement, said that the ATP failed to show understanding of the situation in Ukraine: “The ATP, in its finding, has shown no recognition of the exceptional circumstances created by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, or the international sporting community and UK Government’s response to that invasion.
“The ATP appears to regard this matter as a straightforward breach of their rules – with a surprising lack of empathy shown for the situation in Ukraine, and a clear lack of understanding of the unique circumstances the LTA faced.”
The LTA also said that both fines from the ATP and WTA could affect the quality of future lawn tennis events held in the UK: “The financial impact of both this fine and the WTA’s fine will have a material impact on the LTA’s ability to develop and host tennis in this country.”
Leon Osamor