WTA is ready to reduce the fine of the British Tennis Association in case of admission of Russians and Belarusians to tournaments before Wimbledon

Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) suggested British Tennis Association (LTA) decrease fine in case of admission of Russian and Belarusian athletes to three tournaments (Nottingham, Birmingham, Eastbourne) before Wimbledon 2023.

Last year, the WTA fined the LTA $1 million for preventing Russians and Belarusians from participating in tournaments in Great Britain, including Wimbledon 2022. Now the WTA is ready to reduce the fine to 500,000 if representatives of the aggressor countries can play in three grass tournaments.

There is a sub-clause in the WTA proposal that the fine would also be halved if the LTA and the All England Tennis Club (AELTC) “offer ‘reasonable efforts’ to resolve the issue through negotiations with the British Government”.

Earlier it was reported that tournaments under the auspices of the ATP and WTA could be taken away from the LTA if the association extended the ban on the performances of Russian and Belarusian tennis players.

In April 2022, the organizers of Wimbledon decided to remove Russian and Belarusian tennis players from participation in the tournament in connection with the full-scale invasion of the Russian Federation into Ukraine.

ATP and WTA allow athletes from Russia and Belarus to their events under a neutral flag. It should be noted that at the Australian Open-2023, during the match between Ukrainian Katerina Beindl and Russian Kamilla Rakhimova, fans demonstrated the flag of the Russian Federation. Also, the symbolism of Russia was noticed at the match between Serb Novak Djokovic and Russian Andrey Rublev, and Djokovic’s father was caught on video with a fan in a T-shirt with the Z symbol.