We’re yet to learn the final decision of Wimbledon on whether Russian and Belarusian players will be allowed to compete at the Grand Slam event in 2023, but we do know that the WTA is set to halve the $1-million dollar fine if Wimbledon organizers do not repeat the ban this year.
Players from Russia and Belarus were not allowed to enter Wimbledon 2022, due to political reasons leading to restrictions imposed by the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) and the All England Club (AELTC). As the WTA considered it to be unfair treatment of players based on their nationality, no ranking points were awarded to Wimbledon participants and the organizations were subsequently fined a total of $1 million.
Following an appeal, it has been ruled that the fines will be reduced to a total of $500,000 if the ban gets lifted, or if the WTA is satisfied with the efforts the LTA and AELTC make to find a resolution with the UK government for this year’s grass-court events. The fines are a significant, but the LTA’s biggest concern is that tournaments leading up to Wimbledon could be lost forever.
Even though Elina Svitolina and presumably other Ukrainian players hope for the sanctions to remain in effect, the…
