Athletes from Russia and Belarus were unable to participate in Wimbledon last year, and the ATP and WTA decided not to count points at the London Grand Slam. Under pressure from sanctions and pressure to reverse their decision, the organizers of the premier grass-court event announced on Friday what they had decided on the 2023 event.

Wimbledon 2022Photo: AELTC/Jed Leicester / PA Images / Profimedia

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Athletes from Russia and Belarus will be able to participate in Wimbledon 2023

Officials from the All England Club have announced that athletes from these countries will be able to participate this year, but as “neutrals” and subject to certain conditions.

They are prohibited from showing support for the Russian military offensive in Ukraine and from being financed by the Russian or Belarusian state. They are prohibited, including the sponsorship of companies managed or controlled by the respective states.

“On behalf of the All England Club and the Wimbledon Management Committee, we would like to provide an update on the entries for this year’s competition.

We now intend to accept the entry of Russian and Belarusian players, provided that they compete as neutral athletes and comply with the relevant conditions. They will ban expressions of support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in various forms and will ban entry to players who receive funding from their states (including sponsorships by state-run or controlled companies) in connection with their participation in Wimbledon.

The terms have been carefully developed through constructive dialogue with the UK Government, the LTA and international bodies with an interest in tennis, and are aligned with published government guidance for UK sports organisations.

Three events, taken together, formed the basis of our current position:

1. Last year, the player’s personal statement option was unsustainable. Since then, extensive engagement with government and tennis stakeholders has refined and developed the application form and proposed viable measures for their implementation and enforcement. This approach has the full support of the Government and the LTA, ATP, WTA and ITF.

2. There has been a strong and very disappointing reaction from some tennis governing bodies to the position of the All England Club and the LTA last year, with consequences which, if continued, will damage the interests of players, fans, Wimbledon and the UK.

3. In tennis competitions outside Great Britain during the year, players from Russia and Belarus competed as neutral athletes. We also believe that alignment between Grand Slams is becoming increasingly important in today’s tennis environment,” said a statement published on Wimbledon’s official website.

The All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) and the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) banned athletes from the two countries last year because of Russia’s military offensive in Ukraine.

This year, the Wimbledon tournament is scheduled for July 3-16.