In case you missed it, sh*t has hit the fan as far as tennis is concerned.
On the eve of the Australian Open, allegations of wide-ranging match-fixing emerged, supposedly involving a number of grand slam winners.
But the ATP and WTA tours – the main tours for men’s and women’s professional tennis – have denied talk of a cover-up.
A statement attributed to multiple governing bodies including the ATP and WTA tours reads:
- The Tennis Integrity Unit and the tennis authorities absolutely reject any suggestion that evidence of match fixing has been suppressed for any reason.
- In its investigations the Tennis Integrity Unit has to find evidence as opposed to information, suspicion or hearsay.
- A year‐long investigation into Sopot match in 2007 found insufficient evidence. As the BuzzFeed report states: ‘the investigators had hit a brick wall. It just wasn’t possible to determine who the guilty party was in relation to this match”.
- All professional players, support staff and officials are subject to the Tennis Anti‐ Corruption Program
- Tennis Integrity Unit‐instigated anti‐corruption investigations have resulted in 18 successful disciplinary cases include five players and one official who have been banned from the sport for life.
