Former India No. 1 singles player Somdev Devvarman and former doubles specialist Purav Raja have taken the All India Tennis Association (AITA) to court, accusing it of being a “serial offender” in violating the Sports Code. They have sued the association days before its elections on September 28.
The two athletes have claimed that the AITA has broken multiple rules of the Sports Code in a petition that was submitted to the Delhi High Court. These rules include the following:
No seats for athletes in the Central Council/General Assembly of AITA
Lack of any mechanism whereby athletes are elected from the Central Council/General Assembly to the Executive Committee
Lack of reservation of seats for athletes in the Executive Committee
In their lawsuit, they have also included the government, claiming that the (Sports) Ministry has turned a blind eye to multiple patent violations and has never once made efforts to ascertain if AITA is in compliance with the Sports Code.
The very thought of competing at an Olympic-qualifying event, such as the Asian Games, can take a huge toll on the mind and body. Players like Kwon Soon-Woo would have to go through immense and long sessions of training while simultaneously conditioning the mind to be strong enough to handle the pressure in front of a crowd. It’s not an easy feat for anyone, and we can only imagine how the athletes feel whenever they lose in a match they’ve been preparing for months and all their efforts go to naught.
At the Asian Games 2023 last September 25, spectators witnessed an athlete lose in a match and expressed what he felt so outrightly at that moment. South Korean tennis player Kwon Soon-Woo lashed out in court after his devastating loss of 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 against Thailand’s Kasidit Samrej in the men’s single round in Hangzhou.
#WATCH South Korean tennis player Kwon Soon-woo displayed intense frustration by refusing a handshake and angrily smashing his racket after losing the men's singles tennis at the #AsianGames2023 2-1 to Kasidit Samrej of Thailand on Monday.#Hangzhou#AsianGames#亚运会pic.twitter.com/FctyjTIfko
The tennis player smashed his racket “eleven times”.
A video of Kwon’s post-match behavior quickly spread on social media, X (formerly Twitter) , where he was seen smashing his racket on the court before smashing it on a chair near the umpire. And after arranging a few of his things in the chair, he picked up the racket again, only to smash it once more on the floor.
He then turned his back on everybody and proceeded to arrange his things again. His opponent, Samrej, then approached Kwon, who was making his way out of the court, for a handshake but was ignored.
The possible reason as to why Kwon Soon-Woo lashed out
It was later revealed that South Korean players compete at the Olympics and Asian Games for so much more than a gold medal—an exemption from military service. Fans suspected that this was the reason why the Kwon lashed out on the court, as he no longer had the chance to be exempted from the military service.
As explained by PhoenixCNE News on their X account:
“According to the relevant regulations of South Korea, winning an Olympic medal and an Asian Games gold medal can be exempted from military service.”
#WATCH 🇰🇷South Korean tennis player Kwon Soon-woo smashed his racket and refused to shake hands with his opponent after losing the men's singles tennis at the #AsianGames2023 2-1 to Kasidit Samrej of Thailand on Monday.
“As an athlete, this behavior is very impolite, no respect for the opponent, no respect for the organizers, and no respect for myself”- @YaoZhan64720829
As an athlete, this behavior is very impolite, no respect for the opponent, no respect for the organizers, and no respect for myself
Losing in a tournament is an extremely painful experience, especially when so much is at stake. And no one can tell you how to express your anger and frustration at your defeat, however, the player, Kwon, could have at least shown his sportsmanship first at the event.
Concerns about Jannik Sinner’s possible suspension following two failed drug tests draw attention to a bigger problem in tennis. The Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA), established in 2019 to increase player power, is urging the Grand Slams, ATP and WTA to establish a legal defence fund for athletes.
The PTPA thinks these regulatory organizations ought to provide financial support for players to hire outside attorneys so that everyone can present a prompt and equitable defence without worrying about money being a barrier.
According to them, this strategy would make the system more equal and guarantee that all players, regardless of rating, would be treated fairly.
Novak Djokovic stated; “The question is whether a player can afford to pay a significant amount of money for a law firm that would then more efficiently represent his or her case.”
WADA contests Sinner’s clearance following steroid case revision
There are issues with Jannik Sinner’s doping case being resolved so quickly. The top player in the world tested positive twice in March for the illegal steroid clostebol, but an impartial panel found him not to be at fault or careless.
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) is contesting this ruling, claiming that the panel’s conclusions were erroneous and out of compliance with the relevant regulations. The matter is still being monitored because the appeal has now called into question the first decision.
In an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), the organization is asking for the current ruling to be overturned and for Sinner to be banned for one to two years.
The organization has been unable to establish a presence in tennis’ decision-making circles, failing to be included in important dialogues despite its best efforts.
NADA shows up at Delhi Meet after news of Indian athletes doping spread
In June 2023, Sportstar reported that India had the second highest number of anti-doping rule violations in the world, with 59 cases, second only to Russia, which had 135 cases. This statistic came as a shock to the sports community because, although India had always been included in the top 7 countries with the most doping cases, they never thought that the country would jump to the second spot.
This statistic underscored the prevalence of doping-related concerns within the Indian athlete community, though it largely went unnoticed when the report was released.
However, the landscape has since shifted, and not for the better.
The Delhi State Athletics Meet, which took place from September 23 to 26, aimed to nurture a new generation of top-tier athletes poised to bring honor to India on the global stage. Instead, it has once again implicated India in doping allegations.
An online video emerged, recorded in the stadium’s restroom, revealing an abundance of used syringes and packages of Erythropoietin, a performance-enhancing substance.
The National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) emerged at the meeting to test the athletes
This, in turn, led half of the participants to flee and not show up in their respective competitions. According to reports, some didn’t even bother to claim their medals out of fear of being tested for doping.
In the 100 meter event, seven participants did not participate, stating that they suffered from ‘muscle strain’, leaving only Lalit Kumar to win the competition by default.
‘I was really looking forward to running against the best athletes, but nobody turned up. Everyone was scared of getting tested. As an athlete, I feel very hurt and let down,’ Kumar told the Indian Express.
Like the 100m event, the boys’ under-16 hammer throw was similarly underwhelming, with only one athlete on the field. And, in the women’s steeplechase, a girl reportedly ran even after she had crossed the finish line as anti-doping officials pursued her to collect her sample.
This incident was shared on Track Spice’s X account, where they had written a summary of what happened:
Indian athletes ran away after dope testers show up at Delhi State Athletics meet after a purported video clip of the washroom at the stadium showed piles of used syringes‼️ The number of participants fell by half as news spread that National Anti Doping Agency (NADA) had dropped…
British tennis chiefs said Wednesday they were “disappointed” at being fined $1 million by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for banning Russian and Belarusian players from their events.
Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) came under pressure from the British government to impose a ban.
Russian and Belarusian players were eventually barred from all five ATP tournaments staged by the LTA, including the longstanding Queen’s Club event in London.
The All England Club, which organises Wimbledon, also banned them from competing at this year’s edition of tennis’ oldest Slam.
Both the ATP and the Women’s Tennis Association stripped Wimbledon of its ranking points in protest at a ban labelled “crazy” by 21-time Grand Slam title winner Novak Djokovic.
The WTA had also previously fined British tennis authorities a total of $1 million, split between a $750,000 punishment for the LTA and a $250,000 penalty for the All England Club.
It is also understood the LTA has been threatened with expulsion from the ATP Tour if it repeats the ban.
The LTA, responding Wednesday to the latest sanction, accused the ATP of a “lack of empathy” over the situation in Ukraine, saying in a statement: “The LTA is deeply disappointed with this outcome.
“The ATP, in its finding, has shown no recognition of the exceptional circumstances created by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, or the international sporting community and UK Government’s response to that invasion.
“The ATP appear to regard this matter as a straightforward breach of their rules — with a surprising lack of empathy shown for the situation in Ukraine, and a clear lack of understanding of the unique circumstances the LTA faced.”
The statement added: “We will carefully consider our response and we await the outcome of our appeal against the WTA’s decision and sanction.”
‘Without discrimination’
The ATP insisted later Wednesday they had no intention of changing course.
“We stand by our original position on this matter, that unilateral decision-making by members of the ATP Tour threatens our ability to operate as a global sport,” a spokesman told AFP.
“We believe that the measures taken protect the long-term future of our game and its commitment to merit-based participation, without discrimination, for individual athletes.”
Earlier, the ATP received support from International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach, who criticised the British government for politicising the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes.
“Governments should not decide on political grounds who is participating in which sports events,” said Bach following an IOC executive board meeting in Lausanne.
“The qualification for sports events must be on sporting merits and not on political interference.”
Bach also accused the British government, and others, of going against the Olympic Charter — guarantor of the IOC’s political neutrality.
“To take a decision, a political decision, on a sports competition is clearly not in line with these resolutions and with these commitments and is not in line with the mission of international sports,” he said.
Michelle Donelan, the British government’s Culture Secretary, urged the ATP and WTA to reconsider their punishments.
“We are clear that sport cannot be used to legitimise this deadly invasion, and that athletes representing the Russian or Belarusian states should be banned from competing in other countries,” she said.
“Despite widespread condemnation, the international tennis tours are determined to be outcasts in this, with investment in the growth of our domestic game hampered as a result.”
The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) announced that Polish athlete Iga Swiatek has agreed to a one-month suspension after testing positive for an illegal substance.
The five-time Grand Slam winner tested positive for a prohibited drug called trimetazidine.
The ITIA declared: “The ITIA accepted that the positive test was caused by the contamination of a regulated non-prescription medication (melatonin), manufactured and sold in Poland that the player had been taking for jet lag and sleep issues, and that the violation was therefore not intentional.”
The ITIA offered the athlete a suspension on November 27. The agency added: “The player was provisionally suspended from 22 September until 4 October, missing three tournaments, which counts towards the sanction, leaving eight days remaining… In addition, the player also forfeits prize money from the Cincinnati Open, the tournament directly following the test.”
In a social media post, the athlete admitted: “In the last 2.5 months I was subject to strict ITIA proceedings, which confirmed my innocence. The only positive doping test in my career, showing unbelievably low level of a banned substance I’ve never heard about before, put everything I’ve worked so hard for my entire life into question. Both me and my Team had to deal with tremendous stress and anxiety. Now everything has been carefully explained, and with a clean slate I can go back to what I love most.”
It is prohibited for athletes to use trimetazidine, both during and after competition, as it is classified as a ‘metabolic modulator.’ Unlike other stimulant-class performance-enhancing medicines, this specific drug is made to help with endurance in physical exercise, even though it would not raise the athlete’s heart rate.
All because of melatonin
The result of the test shocked Swiatek. She said: “It was a blow for me, I was shocked and this whole situation made me very anxious. At first I couldn’t understand how that was even possible and where it came from.”
The 23-year-old athlete immediately cooperated with the ITIA, and began conducting tests on medications and nutritional supplements. According to these tests, the melatonin that the athlete claimed to take to aid her in her sleep was contaminated.
Swiatek further said: “This experience, the most difficult in my life so far, taught me a lot… The whole thing will definitely stay with me for the rest of my life, it took a lot of strength, returning to training after this situation nearly broke my heart. So there were many tears and lots of sleepless nights. The worst part of it was the uncertainty.”
The WTA claimed to support Swiatek. WTA stated: “The WTA fully supports Iga during this difficult time. Iga has consistently demonstrated a strong commitment to fair play and upholding the principles of clean sport, and this unfortunate incident highlights the challenges athletes face in navigating the use of medications and supplements.”
“The WTA remains steadfast in our support for a clean sport and the rigorous processes that protect the integrity of competition,” WTA added.
