Andrey Rublev considers the exclusion of Russians and Belarusians to be “discriminatory”, the Belarusian Federation speaks of incitement “to hatred”

The conflict in Ukraine continues to rock the sports world. Russian Andrey Rublev said Thursday, April 24, that the exclusion of Russian and Belarusian players from the next Wimbledon tournament due to the conflict in Ukraine was “totally discriminatory”. “The reasons they [Wimbledon] gave us had, how to say, no sense, they were not logical”said the world number 8 on the sidelines of the ATP 250 tournament in Belgrade.

No caption needed. @AndreyRublev97 #DDFTennis pic.twitter.com/NzCIuPUEZp

— TennisTV (@TennisTV) February 25, 2022

“What is happening now is totally discriminatory against us”he continued. “It’s not going to change anything”also assured the player, who had written “No war please” on a television camera during a competition in Dubai just after the invasion. “Giving tournament prizes to humanitarian aid, to families who are suffering, to children who are suffering, that’s something that would have a little impact”he added. “In that case, tennis would be the only sport to give away such an amount, and it would be thanks to Wimbledon, who would get all the glory.”

The Belarusian Tennis Federation also spoke on the subject on Thursday evening, denouncing in a press release a decision which only“incite hatred and intolerance”. “The Belarusian Tennis Federation categorically condemns the decision taken by Wimbledon organizers to suspend Belarusian and Russian players”she wrote. “Such destructive actions do not contribute anything to a settlement of conflicts, but only incite hatred and intolerance on a national basis”. The authority adds that it consults lawyers in order to “first and foremost protect Belarusian tennis players all over the world”.

Wimbledon organizers announced on Wednesday the exclusion of Russian and Belarusian players from the 2022 edition of the tournament due to the war in Ukraine, a decision already hotly contested by the ATP and WTA. The first one qualified as“unfair” and expressed fear of a possible “dangerous precedent detrimental to sport”. The second also declared itself “very disapointed” of the announcement made by Wimbledon that it considers “neither fair nor justified”.