The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) has confirmed that an American tennis player Adam El Mihdawy has been banned from the sport for three and a half years after admitting match fixing charges. The charges relate to an event in Mexico in 2016 where the player fixed two matches.
El Mihdawy, who has a career-high ATP ranking of 281 opted to have the case heard by an independent Anti-Corruption Hearing Officer (AHO) and Professor Richard H. McLaren determined that the player would receive a suspension of four years which, taking into account time served while provisionally suspended, was commuted to a three-and-a-half year ban starting on 1 September 2022 and ending on 28 February 2026. In addition, the player was fined $5,000 with an additional suspended fine of $10,000, should there be any further breaches of the Tennis Anti-Corruption Program (TACP).
The breaches of the TACP rules that El Mihdawy was sanctioned for are:
Section D.1.d. of the 2016 TACP: No Covered Person shall, directly or indirectly, contrive or attempt to contrive the outcome or any other aspect of any Event.
Section D.1.f. of the 2016 TACP: No Covered Person shall, directly or indirectly, solicit or accept any money, benefit or Consideration with the intention of negatively influencing a Player's best efforts in any Event.
Section D.2.a.i. of the 2016 TACP: In the event any Player is approached by any person who offers or provides any type of money, benefit or Consideration to a Player to (i) influence the outcome or any other aspect of any Event, or (ii) provide Inside Information, it shall be the Player's obligation to report such incident to the TIU [Now ITIA] as soon as possible
The ITIA is an independent body established by the International Governing Bodies of Tennis to promote, encourage, enhance and safeguard the integrity of professional tennis worldwide.
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Published 07 September 2022 17:00
