Andrey Rublev on Wimbledon ban: "Better donate prize money to humanitarian aid"
On the sidelines of the ATP tournament in Belgrade, Andrey Rublev commented on the Wimbledon ban for the Russian and Belarusian players - and made an alternative proposal.
by Florian Goosmann
last edit: Apr 22, 2022, 10:59 am
Rublev explained that there was a conference call between some players and Wimbledon on Wednesday to discuss the situation and find a solution.
Wimbledon announced on Wednesday afternoon that it would exclude the players from Russia and Belarus from the grass highlight - and also from the associated tournaments - due to the war of aggression by Russia with the help of Belarus against Ukraine.
The reasons that Wimbledon replied "didn't make any sense, there was no logic," Rublev explained. If it would change at least half a percent or something like that, according to the world number eight... but that's "complete discrimination".
Rublev: Prize money donation would have a purpose
Rublev's suggestion, which was also communicated to Wimbledon, was that the players should be allowed to decide whether to participate, and that the entire prize money could be donated to humanitarian aid "to families who are suffering, to children". It would mean something, up to a million pounds in the end. "That would be a huge chunk of money, no other sport would have given that much."
Rublev explained that he is not interested in politics, does not follow the news, "I've always worked so hard to play tennis. That's my job. I have no education." He apologized for not being able to provide the "smart, educated answers" to the serious question. He was very emotional and said he felt a lot of pressure, it is said.
"At the end of the day I'm Russian, I was born in Russia, I've lived in Russia all my life. And I want to show that we're good people. In my case: I'm trying to be humble and in the right way and Wisely educated," he continued.
Novak Djokovic and Martina Navratilova also sharply criticized the Wimbledon decision.
Svitolina and Co. call on WTA to take further measures
The Ukrainian players around Elinva Svitolina, Marta Kostyuk and Co. are demanding further measures from the WTA, ATP and ITF , specifically the obligation for Russian and Belarusian players to declare whether they support the war of aggression. The background is that the athletes should also use their reach and popularity on social media to raise their voice.
Olga Savchuk , the team boss of Ukraine's Billie Jean King Cup team, told the New York Times : "It can't be right that there are sanctions on 90 percent of the Russian population and there aren't 10 percent. If you think about it : Why does someone who works in a McDonalds in Russia lose his job because of the sanctions - and tennis players are the exception?"