AELTC ready to ban Daniil Medvedev from Wimbledon

According to the Telegraph in the UK, the All England Club (AELTC) is ready to ban Daniil Medvedev from the event due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Simon Briggs reports that The All-England Club’s independent status means that they could apply bans to players without the threat of legal repercussions. The ATP and the WTA have allowed Russian and Belarusian athletes to continue competing but in the absence of their national flag or anthem in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The Telegraph quotes a source close to the AELTC, who says that its status as a private members' club gives it greater freedom to act compared to the ATP or the WTA. The AELTC’s status allows it to decide who to admit or not while the tours could be held to legal account if it was deemed that their actions were not reasonable, and had denied players the ability to earn a living through no fault of their own.

Sports minister Nigel Huddleston has previously said that Medvedev - and other Russian and Belarusian athletes - could be banned from Wimbledon unless he gives “assurances” that he does not support Russian president Vladimir Putin, saying in March that government is in talks with the AELTC regarding their stance for Wimbledon, which starts on June 27.

Huddleston doubled down on that sentiment last week, adding: “We wish to get assurance in a written declaration that they are not receiving money from Putin, Russia or Belarus [and] that they will not be making supportive comments of Putin, Russia or Belarus.” Medvedev is currently recovering from a hernia and quite possibly could miss the event regardless.