Moment for the history of world female tennis just before 8-M: the WTA, with the financial support of the Saudi Arabia Investment Fund, has implemented the low -maternityfor which active players who decide to be mothers will receive remuneration for up to 12 months, which will allow them to combine their sports career with their personal and family life.
This mile They are absent from the circuit to be mothers to return with the protected rankingthe same one used by the injured, which consists of performing a weighted average of the ranking before the break and allows to play 12 tournaments over three years with him. This excludes the possibility of being standard head And no more protection offers those 12 tournaments.
The new regulation has been led by Victoria Azarenka, one of the mothers who play in the circuit, and that could not benefit of her when she had her first child in 2016. Belarusa had to be absent from the competition for more than a year and He went from being among the five best in the world to not having ranking. Azarenka, former one and winner of several Grand Slams, cost him almost a year to be Top 100 again and He never recovered his status to be among the 10 best in the world.
Other recent cases of tennis players who left the circuit aside to focus on their motherhood were Serena Williams, who won the Australian Open in 2017 pregnant with her first child and, after returning, He needed a year and a half to get into the Top-10and Elina Svitolina, who stopped playing in March 2022 to have a son with also tennis player Gael Monfils, and needed a year after his return to the circuit to be Top-20.
Other tennis players like Ashleight Barty, winner of three Grand Slams, They decided to wait to retire to give birth.
In the open era Only three tennis players have managed to win a Grand Slam after being mothers: Margaret Court, in Australia, Roland Garros and Us Open in 1973, Evonne Golagong, in Wimbledon 1980, and Kim Clijsters, in the US Open in 2009 and 2010 and in Melbourne in 2011. In addition, Serena Williams lost four finals after giving light to OlimpiaAlthough, she won in Australia in 2017 when she was already pregnant with her.
In the current circuit there are Several tennis players who have been active after being motherslike the winners of Grand Slam and numbers one Caroline Wozniacki and Naomi Osaka, the Olympic champion Belinda Bencic, and the German Tatjana Maria, among several more as the aforementioned Azarenka and Svitolina.
“I am very proud to be able to present this program”said the Belarusian. “This marks the beginning of an important change in how we support women in tennis, making it easier for athletes to follow their careers and family aspirations. Getting this was a personal mission of mine.”
The new initiative, however, comes with the seal of Saudi Arabiaone of the greatest sponsors of the WTA and that is gradually introducing itself to the sport of the racket, despite the criticisms of legends such as Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert that consider that a country that restricts the freedom of women and does not respect LGTB rights is a step back for the progress of society.
Saudi Arabia, in addition to having the logo of its investment fund for many tournaments, The WTA finals also housed last seasonthe tournament that brings together at the end of the year the eight best tennis players.
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