Russian Tennis players banned from Wimbledon

Wimbledon is an area in southwest London which holds the All England Club tennis competition, known as The Championships, every year. It is one of the four Grand Slam tournaments along with the French, US and Australian Opens. It is iconic due to it being the only major to be played on grass and is renowned for rain interrupting play. It is a great day out and is tradition to eat strawberries with cream and drink Pimm’s.

Up until now, in other competitions, Russian and Belarusian players have been allowed to play so long as their anthem is not played and under a neutral flag.

Today, however, Wimbledon issued a statement regarding Russian and Belarusian individuals at the 2022 championships.

“On behalf of the All England Club and the Committee of Management of The Championships, we wish to express our ongoing support for all those impacted by the conflict in Ukraine during these shocking and distressing times.

We share in the universal condemnation of Russia’s illegal actions and have carefully considered the situation in the context of our duties to the players, to our community and to the broader UK public as a British sporting institution. We have also taken into account guidance set out by the UK Government specifically in relation to sporting bodies and events.

Given the profile of The Championships in the United Kingdom and around the world, it is our responsibility to play our part in the widespread efforts of Government, industry, sporting and creative institutions to limit Russia’s global influence through the strongest means possible.

In the circumstances of such unjustified and unprecedented military aggression, it would be unacceptable for the Russian regime to derive any benefits from the involvement of Russian or Belarusian players with The Championships.

It is therefore our intention, with deep regret, to decline entries from Russian and Belarusian players to The Championships 2022.

Ian Hewitt, Chairman of the All England Club, commented: “We recognise that this is hard on the individuals affected, and it is with sadness that they will suffer for the actions of the leaders of the Russian regime.

"We have very carefully considered the alternative measures that might be taken within the UK Government guidance but, given the high profile environment of The Championships, the importance of not allowing sport to be used to promote the Russian regime and our broader concerns for public and player (including family) safety, we do not believe it is viable to proceed on any other basis at The Championships.”

If circumstances change materially between now and June, we will consider and respond accordingly.

We also welcome the LTA’s decision in declining entries from Russian and Belarusian players to UK events to ensure that British tennis is delivering a consistent approach across the summer.”