World no 1 Daniil Medvedev is hoping to once again don his nation’s flag as soon as possible. This comes after world sporting bodies including the International Tennis Federation banned the Russian flag due to the nation’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine.
While Russian athletes have not been barred from competing in tennis, the International Tennis Federation (ITF) have decided to make Russian and Belarusian athletes compete under a neutral banner. The Moscow Open has also been removed from the Tennis calender.
Action has also been taken against Belarus as they have vowed to actvely and militarily support Russia in its invasion of Ukraine.
Medvedev is hoping that the suspension of the Russian flag will just be a temporary measure.
“Our task is to develop tennis in the countries where each of us comes from and all over the world,” said Medvedev to Russian state government aligned media outlet RIA novosti.
“For that, you have to play tennis every week at every tournament. At the moment, the only way to continue is to play without a flag, and I will follow this rule.
“But I hope that this measure will be temporary. I am waiting for the moment when we will be able to carry the flag again next to our names, of the Russian athletes.”
The decision by the ITP came amidst Ukrainian tennis star Elina Svitolina campaigning for the federation to take action against Russia. Svitolina stated that she personally has no problem with Russian athletes but felt that it is important for sporting bodies to take action against Vladimir Putin’s military tactics. Svitolina has also since said that she will be donating her prize money towards assisting her home nation in fighting off the invasion from Russia.
Notable men’s tennis stars who will now have to compete under neutral banners include Medvedev, Andrey Rublev, Karen Khachanov and Aslan Karatsev. Women’s stars who have been affected include Aryna Sabalenka, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Victoria Azarenka, Veronika Kudermetova and Daria Kasatkina.
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