Wimbledon CEO says Russian player ban is for this year only

WIMBELDON’S decision to ban players from Russia and Belarus may not last beyond this year, says All England Lawns Tennis Club CEO Sally Bolton.

“The decision we’ve made is for this year’s championships only,” Bolton told Bloomberg Breakfast with David Merritt. “But we still believe it was the right decision for us to take. It’s impossible to call where we’ll be this time next year.”

In April, Wimbledon, 1 of 4 tennis Grand Slam tournaments, announced it would ban Russian and Belarusian players from competing, citing Russia’s “unjustified and unprecedented military aggression”.  The ban excludes several highly ranked players such as the world’s number one Daniil Medvedev, or Aryna Sabalenka, who currently ranks sixth.

“It was an incredibly difficult decision to take and we deeply regret the impact it will have on those affected individuals,” Bolton said.

Bolton said the organisation had followed the guidance set out by the UK government, noting circumstances may be different elsewhere. Two of this year’s other Grand Slams, Roland Garros in Paris and the US Open, decided to let Russians and Belarusians play.

This year’s tournament is the first since 2019 at full capacity with no Covid restrictions. Bolton said they are excited to bring back the famous Wimbledon queue, which allows people to get tickets on the same day as matches but means sleeping on the pavement for many. The queue “is a really integral part of what makes Wimbledon unique and special,” she said. BLOOMBERG