Lessons Must Be Learned From Addressing Alexander Zverev’s Abuse Allegations | Alexander Zverev

[ad_1]

Looking back, the silence that accompanied the first allegations of domestic violence against Alexander Zverev turned out to be the most proactive action taken by tennis in nearly 10 months. During the first week of the Paris Masters last November, despite much criticism, official tennis social media accounts barely covered Zverev’s run to the final. Over time, normalcy has resumed in a predictable way. Zverev, one of the most promising young tennis players, has continued to grow as a player and over the past month has won an Olympic gold medal. All other issues have been put aside.

But this was disturbed again as Olga Sharypova, his ex-girlfriend, spoke more about the abuse she says she suffered in a full interview with the American publication Slate. Last November, in a lengthy interview with Racquet magazine, Sharypova alleged that Zverev hit and strangled her during their relationship, which ultimately led her to attempt suicide by injecting herself with insulin in Geneva. during the Laver Cup 2019.

In Slate’s interview on Wednesday with the same reporter, Ben Rothenberg, shortly after the first interview in 2020, Sharypova claimed that Zverev’s behavior had only intensified, culminating in his attack during the ‘China Open in October 2019. Friends of Sharypovas provided screenshots of the posts. she emailed them at the time, which included photos of the bruises she allegedly inflicted by him.

Zverev denies all of Sharypovas’ claims and has been doing so since last November. Shortly after Slate’s article was published, Zverev said in a statement that he was successful in obtaining a preliminary injunction, a temporary order granted before a trial. He says he took other unspecified legal steps. During his press conference before the tournament at the US Open, Zverev claimed that the court had confirmed that Sharypovas’ claims were false.

When the Guardian asked him to clarify his statement given that neither party was involved in a lawsuit, he repeated to himself: I mean, what do you mean? We have not been tried. If the court confirmed it, the court confirmed it. There is nothing else I can say.

The reaction to Sharypovas’ statements has continually exposed the ignorance surrounding the abuse allegations in general. Although Sharypova said she spoke publicly to help victims of abuse, much of the discussion centered on her decision not to involve any authority. Many victims who speak out against ex-spouses are not necessarily interested in punishing them, while many of those who involve authorities have damaging experiences as they are forced to relive their trauma over and over again.

And then there are cases like that of Alexis Blackburn, the former partner of Major League Baseball player Sam Dyson. The Athletic reported that when Blackburn contacted police to report that she had been a victim of domestic violence, an officer told her that she looked like a vindictive girlfriend. When Dyson was questioned by the police, an officer closed the case by addressing him like an old friend: OK, go back to your training, mate! Police found no probable cause of domestic violence. Ultimately, the MLB conducted its own investigation and in March suspended Dyson for the entire season for violating its domestic violence policy.

Sharypova also said that she had not received any contact from the Association of Tennis Professionals. It is not only necessary for sports governing bodies to develop policies to investigate accusations, but they have a duty to ensure that all potential victims have the same resources, support and advice. Sport inherently creates a huge power imbalance between athletes and some partners, especially in tennis. Some partners are not only often financially dependent on the athlete, but travel the world and may be thousands of miles away from friends and family when problems arise.

The sight of an alleged victim publicly revealing such details of abuse she says she suffered by a public figure is still rare. It is therefore imperative that there is an environment and culture that allows an alleged victim to feel comfortable reporting abuse, whether in private or in public. Tennis has desperately failed in this distinction and it is hard not to see the past 10 months as actively damaging this critical situation. As Zverev continued her fine trajectory in the field and even gained approval from Rolex, Sharypova said she was struggling to find a job because potential employers would search her name and find this news.

Sign up for The Recap, our weekly editor’s pick email.

Four days before Slate’s article was published, ATP announced an independent review of safeguard policy development, which is a positive step forward. But Rothenberg noted that while ATP did not help his reporting, he repeatedly inquired about the publication date of the article. The ad was also conspicuously absent from its social media platforms.

After the last 10 months, people will be convinced that ATP is committed to protecting those who are in pain and are not more concerned about bad optical incidents like this. His immediate instincts were to avoid the problem, and then, thanks to the glowing coverage Zverev’s successes on the pitch have received in the past, they demonstrated how sports structures seem to move naturally to protect their stars. This is precisely how governing bodies should not react.

[ad_2]