In October, Moscow-born Maria Timofeeva switched her allegiance to Uzbekistan. Kamilla Rakhimova and Polina Kudermetova performed the same move this month.
Anastasia Potapova, three-time WTA champion, now also represents another country. However, unlike Timofeeva, Rakhimova and Kudermetova, the 24-year-old did not choose Uzbekistan, but Austria.
Of this group of players, only Potapova is in the top 50 – she is right at number 50 in the world. Rakhimova is ranked 97 in the world, Kudermetova is ranked 104, while Timofeeva is the 143rd ranked player in the world.
Asked to share his opinion on the matter, Tarpischev claimed that the players only obtained sporting citizenship of the mentioned countries – probably because they wanted to play in the next Olympic Games. The RTF president also said that the four players in question retained their original passports – and therefore remain patriots.
Tarpischev: An athlete can be criticized only if he is not a patriot of Russia
“It is clear that an athlete first of all wants to participate in as many tournaments as possible. An athlete can only be criticized if he is not a patriot of Russia. Those who change their sports nationality while keeping a Russian passport just want to play. Those who leave are those who do not make it to our national team. It is clear who qualifies for the Olympic Games – almost the entire lineup – while the rest just want to play,” Tarpischev said via a Russian publication. Championship.
Earlier this year, Daria Kasatkina began representing Australia. Before making the change, Kasatkina criticized the Russian government and was even criticized by a Russian politician a few years ago.
In one of his recent interviews, Tarpischev was asked whether Russia was in danger of losing Mirra Andreeva and Diana Shnaider. The RTF president strongly rejected that claim and confidently stated that they would continue to represent their homeland.
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