Wimbledon Ready to Reconsider Decision to Bar Russian, Belarusian Athletes in June

The Wimbledon championship announced their decision to bar Russian and Belarusian athletes from the 2022 tennis championship, citing the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

The organisers of the 2022 Wimbledon tennis championship said that Russian and Belarusian athletes will be declined participation in the tournament, but the All England Club and the Committee of Management of The Championships will be ready to change the decision "if circumstances change materially between now and June".

“We recognise that this is hard on the individuals affected, and it is with sadness that they will suffer for the actions of the leaders of the Russian regime," said Ian Hewitt, Chairman of the All England Club. "We have very carefully considered the alternative measures that might be taken within the UK Government guidance but, given the high profile environment of The Championships, the importance of not allowing sport to be used to promote the Russian regime and our broader concerns for public and player (including family) safety, we do not believe it is viable to proceed on any other basis at The Championships."

The Wimbledon organisers justified their decision with a condemnation of Russia's "illegal actions" in Ukraine amid Moscow's ongoing military operation in the neighbouring country.

The official statement by the organisers did not clarify the extent to which they expect the circumstances to change.

The decision to bar Russian and Belarusian athletes from the tennis championship was reported earlier; the Kremlin was quick to blast the move as "unacceptable".

Commenting on the reports, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that “once again making athletes hostages of some kind of political prejudice, political intrigue, and hostile actions against our country is inadmissible”. He also hinted that the decision would hurt the championship itself, underlining that the Russian athletes are "among the top listed in the world rankings”.

Following the launch of its military operation in Ukraine, Russia has faced a slew of Western sanctions targeting its economy, culture, businesses, media, and sports. As the Western countries slam the military operation in Ukraine as "invasion", the Kremlin says it was launched with a goal to "demilitarise and de-Nazify" the neighbouring nation, and it was the tragedy in the breakaway republics of Donbass that triggered the operation.