Aryna Sabalenka follows Emma Raducanu in snubbing Olympics because of 'WTA rules'
Aryna Sabalenka has become the latest player to skip the Olympics after Emma Raducanu turned down the chance to play.
Aryna Sabalenka has become the latest player to announce that she will not be playing at the upcoming Olympics.
After Emma Raducanu turned down an invitation to the tennis event at Paris 2024, the world No. 3 confirmed that she had also decided to snub the Olympics.
Sabalenka explained that the WTA’s “rules” about mandatory tournaments forced her to make the difficult decision and prioritise her health.
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The tennis event at the Olympics will take place in the last week of July at Stade Roland Garros - the home of the French Open. For many players, it’s a chance to fight for a medal on familiar clay courts. But some have already opted out of this year’s Games, which have been crammed into an already-packed tennis season.
Sabalenka confirmed that she would skip the Olympics ahead of this week’s WTA 500 in Berlin. “Well I’m not going to play Olympics because of the rules from WTA with mandatory tournaments, I have to sacrifice something and unfortunately, I have to sacrifice the Olympics,” the two-time Australian Open champion saud.
“At this stage of my career and especially with all the struggles, I’ve been struggling the last months, I feel like I need to take care of my health. But that’s so tricky and I think it’s too much for the scheduling and it’s just too much and I made [the] decision to take care of my health.”
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The Olympics tennis will be held in between the grass season and the North American hard-court swing. It means those who choose to compete will switch between all three surfaces in quick succession.
The tennis season has also become even longer with most of the joint ATP and WTA Masters 1000 events extending to 13 days instead of one week. It means there are fewer chances to take a much-needed break in the middle of the year and players like Sabalenka aren’t willing to give up their post-Wimbledon holiday time for the Olympics.
Raducanu also decided against playing the Games in Paris this year and was left out of the British team named on Sunday. The LTA’s head of women’s tennis Ian Bates confirmed the news, explaining that the 2021 US Open champion turned down the chance to qualify for the Olympics despite falling outside of the top 200 in the rankings.
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“We were notified on Thursday that Emma would be eligible for one of those places and I've had various conversations with Emma over the last couple of weeks and it really clear to me how much being part of a British team would mean to her. We saw how much it meant when she represented her team in April at the Billie Jean King Cup but also I think she feels it is not the right time for her,” he explained.
“A lot of that is the late notice for spot, also the surface change from grass, clay and hard. Everyone is aware of her history and that places greater stress on her. Also an element of where her ranking is and getting to the US and pushing back her ranking.”
Raducanu later explained her reasoning and, like Sabalenka, she wanted to think about her health. She said: “For me, it was pretty clear from the start. I’m very single-minded, I do things my own way and at my own time, whenever I want, not in a diva way, but prioritising my body and my health. If I’m fit, if I’m giving 100 per cent, I know great things are coming. I just don’t think there’s any need to put additional stress on my body or any risks, especially with my [injury] history.”
