MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 07th May, 2022) The International Tennis Federation (ITF) has officially suspended the Russian Tennis Federation's (RTF) membership, RTF President Shamil Tarpischev has told Sputnik.
An extraordinary conference of the ITF was held on Friday.
"The activities of the Russian Tennis Federation have officially been suspended. The decision was made by a general vote. It was expected. They will suspend our and Belarusians' membership. Essentially, it was an already decided question," Tarpischev said.
In March, the ITF suspended the RTF and the Belarusian Tennis Federation and canceled all tournaments in these countries under the auspices of the organization amid Moscow's special military operation in Ukraine. Russia and Belarusian athletes can compete in tournaments under the auspices of the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) and the Women's Tennis Association (WTA), and as neutral athletes. ATP and WTA also canceled the Kremlin Cup, which was to be held in Moscow in October.
Wimbledon tournament organizers suspended Russian and Belarusian tennis players from participating in the draw this season in late April because of the situation in Ukraine. The tournament will be held from June 27 to July 10.
Russia launched its special military operation in Ukraine on February 24 after the breakaway republics of Donetsk and Luhansk appealed for help in defending themselves against Ukrainian provocations. In response, the EU rolled out a comprehensive sanctions campaign against Moscow.
