Daniil Medvedev and his gang back at Wimbledon? A year after banning Russian and Belarusian players under pressure from the British government due to the invasion of Ukraine, the All England Lawn Tennis Club, organizer of the Grand Slam tournament, has announced its intention to welcome them to London under certain conditions. Daniil Medvedev and his band back to Wimbledon ? A year after banning Russian and Belarusian players under pressure from the UK government due to the invasion of Ukrainethe All England Lawn Tennis Club, organizer of the Grand Slam tournament, has announced its intention to welcome them to London under certain conditions.
“Our current intention is to accept the participation of Russian and Belarusian players provided that they compete as neutral athletes and that they fulfill the desired conditions”, announces the AELTC, stressing in particular that they “will be prohibited from ‘express their support for the Russian invasion of Ukraine’ and that players ‘receiving financial aid’ from Russia or Belarus to participate in the tournament will not be allowed to participate.
Ukraine strikes back
“We still totally condemn the illegal invasion by Russia and we maintain our deep support for the people of Ukraine,” said AELTC President Ian Hewitt, assuring that the decision announced on Friday had been “incredibly difficult” to take.
Later in the day, Ukraine urged the British government not to issue visas to Russian and Belarusian tennis players. “Wimbledon’s decision to allow Russian and Belarusian players to participate is immoral. Has Russia ended its aggression or its atrocities? launched the head of Ukrainian diplomacy Dmytro Kouleba on Twitter. “I call on the UK government to refuse to issue visas to their players,” he added.