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The Wimbledon Championships began Tuesday without Russian or Belarusian players taking the grass courts because Vladimir Putin’s invaded Ukraine, which started in February.
The invasion sparked a backlash against Russian and Belarusian athletes across the sports world. The All England Club, which organizes Wimbledon, decided to ban players from those countries from playing in the third major tennis tournament of the season.
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Ian Hewitt, the All England Club chairman, speaks to the press on April 26, 2022, in London.
(Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)
All England Club chairman Ian Hewitt explained to ESPN he didn’t want Wimbledon to be a place for players to spread propaganda, nor did he want to “defy government guidance.”
“One was a route to consider having personal declarations from players, and, frankly, we did not think that was the right approach for a tournament of our kind,” Hewitt said of his options. “We were not willing to jeopardize any safety of players, and we think that that route would have involved implications for players’ safety or the safety of their families, which left no other viable alternative.
“But also, it was very important to us that Wimbledon, given the profile that we have, should not be used in any way by the propaganda machine which we know the Russian government employs about its people and how their position in the world is presented, and that would be, we would not countenance Wimbledon success or participation in Wimbledon being misused in that way.
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All England Club chairman Ian Hewitt explained to ESPN that he didn’t want Wimbledon to be a place for players to spread propaganda.
(Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)
“So, due to the combination of reasons, we were left with no viable alternative other than to decline entries. We hugely regret the impact on the individual players affected, but we also hugely regret the impact on so many innocent people which the tragic situation in Ukraine has caused.”
Hewitt added he was “disappointed” the ATP and the WTA stripped rankings points from the tournament.
Novak Djokovic, a six-time Wimbledon champion, spoke out about the decision in April, saying that while he will always condemn war, politics, and sports should never mix.
Ashleigh Barty and Karolina Pliskova during the ladies’ singles final at All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on July 10, 2021, in London.
(AELTC/Ben Queenborough – Pool/Getty Images)
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“I cannot support the decision of Wimbledon. I think it is crazy. When politics interferes with sport, the result is not good.”
Fox News’ Paulina Dedaj contributed to this report.
Ryan Gaydos is the sports editor for Fox News and Fox Business. Story tips can be sent to [email protected].
