“Neutral” tennis player complained about WTA rules
World number three Arina Sabalenko stated that she would not speak at Olympics 2024 in Paris. The “neutral” athlete complained about the WTA rules, which make it difficult for her to prepare for tournaments.
“I won’t play at the Olympics, it’s because of all these WTA rules. I have to sacrifice something. At this point in my career, and especially with all the struggles I’ve been struggling with over the past month, I feel like I need to take care of my health. It’s too much in terms of schedule. I decided to take care of my health.”
Earlier, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) published the names of the first 25 athletes who will take part in the 2024 Olympics under “neutral” status. It includes athletes who will compete in road cycling, trampolining, weightlifting and wrestling. The IOC noted that the list will be updated in the future.
Let us recall that at the beginning of December 2023, the Executive Committee of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) decided to admit participants from Russia and Belarus in the status of “individual neutral athletes” to the 2024 Olympic Games. In response, the head of the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Ukraine, Matvey Bedny, called the IOC decision “irresponsible.”
In turn, the President of the National Olympic Committee (NOC) of Ukraine Vadim Gutzeit announced plans to assemble his own admission database regarding “neutral” athletes admitted to the 2024 Olympic Games. Gutzeit also said that Ukrainian athletes will not be able to perform any actions reminiscent of the war in Ukraine during the 2024 Olympics.
In the women’s singles tennis competition at the 2024 Olympics, Ukraine will be represented by four athletes – Marta Kostyuk, Elina Svitolina, Dayana Yastremskaya and Angelina Kalinina. Sisters Nadezhda and Lyudmila Kichenok will perform in the doubles competition of the Games in Paris.
Source: Sportarena
I’m Todderic Kirkman, a journalist and author for athletistic. I specialize in covering all news related to sports, ranging from basketball to football and everything in between. With over 10 years of experience in the industry, I have become an invaluable asset to my team. My ambition is to bring the most up-to-date information on sports topics around the world.
