Meanwhile at Russian Veronika Kudermetova’s post-match media conference, a moderator told a reporter who had asked about relationships with Ukrainian players in the locker room, to “Move it on to tennis, if it’s okay.” Wimbledon 2023: The favorites, the main challengers and how to watch Serbia's Novak Djokovic celebrates with the trophy after winning the men's singles final against Australia's Nick Kyrgios Matthew Childs/Reuters

Tennis - Wimbledon - All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, London, Britain - July 10, 2022 To a reporter who asked what Wimbledon means to Russian culture, Belarusian Victoria Azarenka fired back: “You do know I’m not from Russia, right?”

Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka began her post-match conference earlier this week telling reporters: “Before we continue I would like to say I’m not going to talk about politics. Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, with Belarus playing a key role in allowing Moscow’s troops to use its territory as a staging ground for the attack.Īlthough “other nationality flags” are allowed in line with tournament restrictions on size, Russian and Belarusian flags are not permitted to be displayed both in court or “on anything official,” a spokesperson for the the All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club confirmed to CNN.ĭuring the opening week, fans at Wimbledon have generally been quite warm to the Russian and Belarusian players but they’ve been especially enthusiastic to the Ukrainians.īut away from the courts, tensions are apparent. Though tournament organizers have been keen to emphasize that they “continue to condemn totally Russia’s illegal invasion,” chatter around the war at Wimbledon remains a touchy subject. A year after tennis players from Russia and Belarus were banned from playing at Wimbledon following the invasion of Ukraine, organizers have accepted entries from players from the two countries for the 2023 grand slam tournament if they have complied with “appropriate conditions” and compete as neutral athletes.

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