The 29-year-old Georgian doubles player Natela Dzalamidze is listed as being from Georgia in Wimbledon’s entry for the women’s doubles, where she will compete with the Serbian Aleksandra Krunic next week.
A Russian tennis player changed her nationality to Georgian to circumvent Wimbledon’s ban on all Russian competitors.
Moscow is where Dzalamidze, who is ranked 44th in the world, was born.
Due to the invasion of Ukraine, the All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) banned Russian and Belarusian players from competing at Wimbledon in April.
The All England Club stated that in light of Russia’s unjustified and unprecedented military aggression, it would be unacceptable for Russian or Belarusian players to participate in The Championships.
Monday, the AELTC stated to the Reuters news agency that a player’s nationality “is an agreed-upon process that is governed by the tours and the International Tennis Federation,” adding that it had no role in a player’s change of nationality.
Daniil Medvedev of Russia, who is ranked number one in the world, and Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus, who is ranked sixth in the world, cannot compete due to the ban.
In contrast, Russian and Belarusian players will be permitted to compete under neutral flags at this year’s US Open.
The Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) supported Wimbledon’s actions at the time, despite criticism that a ban on players who had nothing to do with the invasion was unfair.
The men’s governing body, the ATP, stated that it could “set a damaging precedent for the sport,” while the women’s governing body, the WTA, expressed “extreme disappointment.”
It resulted in Wimbledon losing its ATP ranking points for 2022, with the ATP stating that “the ability for players of any nationality to enter tournaments based on merit and without discrimination is fundamental” to the tour.
Wimbledon is scheduled to occur between June 27 and July 10.
