The organizers of the Wimbledon tournament have decided to exclude Russian and Belarusian tennis players from the prestigious London Slam. The choice made by the Championships sparked diverse and controversial reactions within the world of tennis.
The ATP and WTA have spoken out against the decision taken by the organizers of Wimbledon and have postponed, in recent hours, the decision on the sanctions to be taken against the tournament. The Association of Tennis Professionals, for now, has only confirmed that this season’s ATP events at Queen’s and Eastbourne will go ahead smoothly and earn ATP points.
Marta Kostyuk, a young Ukrainian tennis star, took up the delicate topic and asked some questions to Russian tennis players. She told others: “Some Russian and Belarusian players mentioned the war in several interviews, but they never clarified that their countries started by invading Ukraine.”
Marta Kostyuk: “Russian tennis players should…”
Then she adds: “Therefore, we ask the ATP, WTA and ITF to ensure that Russian and Belarusian tennis players answer the following questions.
Do you support Russia and Belarus’ invasion of Ukraine? Do you support the military activities of Russia and Belarus in Ukraine? Do you support the Putin and Lukashenko regimes? We call for a ban on Russian and Belarusian athletes from all competitions.
There comes a time when silence must be considered a betrayal. » Elina Svitolina also spoke about the reactions of Russian tennis players and the silence of some colleagues: “Organizations should ask Russian and Belarusian athletes three simple questions, in which they declare that they are opposed to war and regimes of their countries.
In the event of no response, the right is excluded. Silence is complicity with the oppressors. » Wimbledon organizers seemed willing to give Russian tennis players the opportunity to participate in the tournament through a document to sign; a document that would clarify their position. But even this hypothesis was then thrown away: we will see what happens in the coming weeks.
