WTA CEO warns players about ‘distasteful content’ after Paula Badosa and Magda Linette racism controversy
WTA CEO urged players to respect the local culture of the regions after Paula Badosa and Magda Linette's racism row.
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Magda Linette, Paula Badosa (Images via X)
Paula Badosa and Magda Linette have received warnings from WTA after seemingly racist posts on social media. WTA CEO Portia Archer emailed players that such behaviors won’t be ‘tolerated’. Archer didn’t mention any particular incident but during the Asian swing, two WTA players were accused of racism.
Badosa’s coach posted a picture of the player with her eyes pulled back with chopsticks. Linette on the other hand shared a picture about her visit to Wuhan with the caption: ‘The virus database has been updated’ which was about the COVID-19 outbreak in Wuhan. Archer urged every player to respect the local culture of the region.
Distasteful content of any kind (such as images, references, text, video) relating to the culture, history, or hurtful stereotypes of a group of people or a region is inconsistent with the values the WTA represents and will not be tolerated.
Portia Archer wrote in the email
Badosa had apologized multiple times and said she was simply ‘playing with her wrinkles’ and was unaware that her action would be perceived in that way. In another post as well she took ‘full responsibility’ for her action.
Linette also tried to apologize on court after her straight-set win over Liudmila Samsonova in the Wuhan Open. But when she started to apologize, the on-court interviewer interrupted her and told her to talk something about the match. There were also screams of ‘apologize’ during her match.
Portia Archer says disrespectful content could put tournament in jeopardy
WTA CEO Portia Archer thinks such content could pose a risk around the tournament. Archer warned that harmful actions could put the entire tournament in jeopardy as it could affect the ‘security, transport, and other areas.’
Not only do such harmful actions generate negative coverage and reflect poorly for the athlete, but they also impact women’s professional tennis as a whole, along with having negative effects on the hard-working team and staff that organize WTA events.
Portia Archer wrote
China plays host to several WTA tournaments toward the end of the year including the two WTA 1000 events, China Open and Wuhan Open. Paula Badosa participated in two tournaments in the country.
She reached the semifinal in Beijing and lost to eventual champion Coco Gauff. The Spaniard was then scheduled to play in Wuhan but she withdrew.
In Ningbo, she gave a walkover to Daria Kasatkina in the semifinal. Magda Linette also played in Beijing, Wuhan, and Ningbo but was trophyless.
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Gouri Das
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