In the spirit of fair play: how the WTA defends the rights of Russian and Belarusian tennis players

"Athletes should be able to participate in tournaments without any discrimination"

Tennis remains one of the few sports in which Russian and Belarusian athletes retained the opportunity to compete in international competitions after the start of the NWO.

Let them be banned from participating in team tournaments and ordered to play in a neutral status, but allowed to continue to enter the court.

However, some rivals from Ukraine still cannot come to terms with this and allow provocative actions.

For example, Lesya Tsurenko refused to meet with Arina Sobolenko in the third round of a major tournament in Indian Wells.

She explained her move as a panic attack after talking with WTA CEO Steve Simon, who announced the possible admission of domestic athletes to the Olympic Games.

A little later, the Women's Tennis Association issued a statement regarding the situation.

They emphasized that they respect the girl's emotions and expressed support for Ukraine, but remained adamant about the main thing - the issue of the participation of Russians and Belarusians in tournaments.

“We maintain the fundamental principle of the WTA, which states that athletes should be able to participate in professional tournaments without any discrimination, without being subject to sanctions due to decisions made by the leadership of their countries,” R-Sport quotes the text of the WTA commentary.

Tsurenko refused the match with Sobolenko just a few minutes before it began "for personal reasons."

She later admitted that she was shocked by the conversation with Simon.

The functionary, according to her, said that he himself does not support the SVO, but the position of the Russian and Belarusian players remains their own opinion, and this should not upset anyone.

In a conversation with the Big Tennis of Ukraine portal, Tsurenko noted that Simon suggested that other sports would soon join this approach, and athletes from Russia and Belarus would probably be able to compete at the Olympics.

Moreover, the WTA CEO approved of this development and considered it to be in the spirit of fair play.

“I was absolutely shocked by this conversation, and already in the last game (with Donna Vekic. -

) it was incredibly difficult to play, hard to get together.

And today, when it was time to go to the court, I had a panic attack, and I just couldn't go there.

I really hope that I can digest all this information and be better prepared for the next tournament, ”added Tsurenko.

The 95th racket of the planet found other reasons for dissatisfaction with Simon.

In particular, she lamented that he did not give a clear answer to the question of whether Ukrainians in the WTA tour would be provided with additional accommodation and meals, as in the Australian Open.

Now a group of Ukrainian players intends to organize a conference call with the organization's board of directors to discuss the prospects for the functionary's work in a leadership position.

“I immediately warned that I would not shake hands”

It is curious that after the second round game in Indian Wells, Tsurenko herself faced a disrespectful attitude from her opponent - Vekic refused to shake her hand.

Lesya already then complained of feeling unwell, referring to the fact that it was psychologically difficult for her to prepare for the match.

Probably, the reason for refusing to confront Sobolenko was not only a conversation with Simon and mental problems, but also a tough statement by the head of the NOC of Ukraine.

Recently, a meeting was held in the country with the participation of both Vadim Gutsait and members of the executive committee of the National Olympic Committee, as well as heads of federations in various sports.

At it, all those present addressed the IOC with a demand not to allow colleagues from Russia and Belarus to participate in international competitions until the end of the SVO.

According to local media, the hitch arose only with the tennis and cycling federations.

The head of the NOC expressed dissatisfaction with the fact that Ukrainians continue to compete with Russians and Belarusians in these events, and called for abandoning this practice.

FTU President Sergei Lagur, who was not present at the meeting, explained his position in a special letter.

He recalled that by boycotting certain meetings, tennis players lose the most important rating points, which may not be enough to qualify for the Olympics.

However, according to Gutzeit, this is not a good reason.

“For me, the independence of Ukraine and the lives of our people is more important than the rating for the Olympic Games.

When they tell me that we are losing our rating... We are losing people - and this is the main thing.

If an athlete is worthy, over time he will receive this rating and money, ”the functionary noted.

Perhaps he was talking, among other things, about the match between Varvara Gracheva and Marta Kostyuk that took place in early March.

The girls' paths crossed in the tournament finals in Austin.

The Ukrainian won in two sets, and after the end of the confrontation she did not shake her opponent's hand.

“My behavior was premeditated.

I had a conversation with representatives of the WTA, they asked how I would like the awards ceremony, photo shoot and so on.

I immediately warned that I would not shake hands and take a photo ... Varvara did not express any personal or public condemnation (SVO. -

), so for me this is a certain sign that in the soul a person supports what is happening now, ” Kostyuk explained her step.

“It remains to do your job and not react in any way”

In Russia, the incident was treated calmly.

So, the head of the RTF, Shamil Tarpishchev, urged domestic tennis players not to pay attention to such behavior and calmly continue to play.

A similar point of view is shared by the honored coach of the RSFSR Viktor Yanchuk.

Although he called the actions of Kostyuk and Tsurenko ugly, he stressed that they should not be led to provocations.

“Even if the opponents do not want to go out with our girls on the court, this is their position and their problems.

We just have to do our job and not react in any way.

Well, Kostyuk did not shake hands with Gracheva - and God bless her.

This is not such an important event.

Let it remain on her conscience, ”the specialist said in a commentary to RT.

But the winner of seven ATP tournaments and well-known coach Andrei Chesnokov, on the contrary, remained outraged by the behavior of Ukrainian women.

For example, he called the words of Tsurenko a disgusting lie and suggested imposing serious sanctions on her for withdrawing from the match.

“Hitting Simon is an ugly act.

In fact, she refused to play with Sobolenko without a good reason: she allegedly lost her breath due to the possible admission of Russians and Belarusians to the Olympic Games.

Tsurenko blamed a crystal-clear person for her illness.

There was an attempt at a disgusting PR, and everyone believes in this dirt.

I think Lesya should be severely punished: deprive of all points and prize money for her performance in Indian Wells and disqualify for two months, ”Chesnokov noted.

At the same time, he believes that the WTA, like the ATP, despite Tsurenko’s clear answer, does not sufficiently protect the interests of domestic tennis players.

“Firstly, our guys are forced to perform in a neutral status - without a flag and an anthem.

Secondly, we missed Wimbledon last year.

Thirdly, Kostyuk refused to shake hands with Gracheva and was not punished for it in any way.

But all players are required to study a special collection of rules of conduct from the WTA and ATP for 200 pages, where everything is written.

The Ukrainian violated them, but did not suffer,” Chesnokov added.

In turn, Yanchuk is sure that the world tennis leadership has always adhered to the principle “Sport is out of politics” and defended the rights of athletes.

As an example, he cited athletes from South Africa, who in the second half of the 20th century were excluded from most international competitions due to apartheid.

“But in tennis they continued to perform.

Moreover, Soviet players at home were not allowed to play with them because of the fear that African countries might respond by boycotting the Moscow Olympics.

But in the leadership of world tennis they continued to insist on their own: South Africans were forbidden to enter the court in team tournaments, for example, the Fed Cup, but there was no talk of any personal ban.

They still believe that the issue of politics is not the business of athletes, ”summed up the coach.