LONDON (AP) — The Lawn Tennis Association was fined $1 million by the ATP men’s professional tour for banning players from Russia and Belarus from its grass-court events this summer.
The governing body of British tennis banned the players from five Wimbledon warm-up tournaments following Russia’s war in Ukraine.
The ATP, which oversees men’s tennis outside of the Grand Slams, also warned the LTA it could lose its membership in the organization if it repeats the ban.
“We stand by our original position on this matter, that unilateral decision-making by members of the ATP Tour threatens our ability to operate as a global sport,” the ATP said in a statement. “We believe that the measures taken protect the long-term future of our game and its commitment to merit-based participation, without discrimination, for individual athletes. We have no further comment.”
The LTA said it “deeply disappointed” with the tour’s action.