“Officiating needs to be reviewed,” Widespread corruption and abuse unearthed within the International Tennis Federation
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Richard Ings and ITF
A probe into the International Tennis Federation’s (ITF) head of officiating Soeren Friemel‘s affairs claims to have discovered widespread tennis corruption and abuse. Abuses of authority within the International Tennis Federation, according to the Telegraph, date back at least 15 years.
According to insiders, a small handful of people wield enormous power and have used it to silence whistleblowers. A ban on umpires speaking to the media was used to discourage officials from speaking, according to former ATP Tour head of officiating, Richard Ings. “This rule was designed to prevent discussion of particular instances within matches, “It was never designed to protect the sport from embarrassment. But that’s what it has become,” said Ings speaking with Telegraph.
Witnesses from International Tennis Federation have come forward to confirm the statements
Andrew Jarret, the former ITF head of officiating, has urged major changes to the game. “The recent investigation by a QC [into Friemel’s behavior] and the subsequent announcement by the ITF came as no great surprise. World tennis and the officials working within it deserve better governance. This is now an opportunity to make changes to a system that has long been broken.” Jarret said in an email to the Telegraph.
While Friemel has been fired from the ITF for making inappropriate remarks, the study states that there are still more executives within the ITF who have been accused of serious power abuse. It’s still unknown how widespread corruption in tennis is.
Another administrator, who did not want to be identified, stated that the entire mechanism for appointing match officials needed a change.“Officiating needs to be reviewed,” the administrator said. “We just have to accept it’s not right. It doesn’t need a sticking plaster. We have to rip it all up.” The administrator said in the light of the shocking news discovered.
Former chair umpire Martin Wikstrom alleged that officials had been abusing one other for years, much of it sexually. He said, “In my time, it was a well-known fast-track for your career if you were open to using your body to promote your career,” He further adds, “When you look at some of the officials that came through – let’s say within 10 years – there was no way that they would have made it if the decision was purely based on their competence.”
According to Ings, those in command had maintained control by enforcing a regime of terror. “Officials are afraid to speak. If they do tell a reporter about anything that is happening backstage, even anonymously, their bosses will go hunting for who gave that information. If they find who spoke out, or maybe just have suspicions, they don’t even have to bring a Code of Conduct charge. They can simply not select that person for the next job. People quickly get the message and there is a wall of silence that develops.”
The news is very disappointing for fans and audiences to hear considering the fact that tennis has one of the largest fanbases and is much beloved. We hope that there are reforms that are set in place to ensure that this does not happen.
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Harini Mahesh
(159 Articles Published)