French Open officials have announced that Paraguayan tennis player Adolfo Daniel Vallejo will cop a “significant sanction” over “unacceptable” comments about a female umpire. The World No. 71 lost to French 17-year-old Moise Kouame in a five-set thriller at Roland Garros, with Kouame prevailing 6-3 7-5 3-6 2-6 7-6 (10-8).
Speaking to tennis website ‘Clay’ after the match, Vallejo claimed that Brazilian chair umpire Ana Carvalho hadn’t done enough to control the crowd amid vocal support for his French opponent. Vallejo made extraordinary comments that a male umpire should have been in charge.
Adolfo Daniel Vallejo (L) was critical of chair umpire Ana Carvalho (R) after his loss to Moise Kouame (centre) at the French Open. Image: Getty
“This sort of match needs to be umpired by a man. It’s very difficult for a woman to do it,” the 22-year-old said. “It has to be refereed by a man, because it’s a very demanding crowd and you need a lot of strength to go against the crowd.”
The French Tennis Federation later released a statement condemning Vallejo’s comments and vowing to impose a fine. “The competence of an umpire is not determined by their gender, but by their professionalism and ability to officiate at the highest level,” the statement said. “The outcome of a sporting event, whether positive or negative, can never justify or excuse such remarks.”
The statement said Vallejo would receive “a significant sanction… in the form of a fine.” Officials added: “The Roland Garros tournament strongly condemns all sexist remarks, regardless of who makes them, and offers its support to the match umpire and, more broadly, to all the tournament’s umpiring officials.”
Ana Carvalho helps Moise Kouame after a fall.
(DIMITAR DILKOFF)
Vallejo claimed Carvalho had given Kouame too much recovery time in between points. “I think he took up a lot of time on many occasions, lying on the floor or stalling,” he said.
“And it’s not normal for the crowd to be shouting for a full minute without any play. In a match where the physical aspect matters so much, if you give a player a lot of time, he’s obviously going to take advantage of it.”
Vallejo later issued an apology, saying: “I have respect for the umpire and for the job they do. After a five-hour battle I was very heated and with a lot of emotions. I apologise. I also want to clarify that I didn’t blame her for the defeat. She did a good job throughout the whole match.
“I will learn and get better from this. I also have great respect for Roland Garros, the French Tennis Federation, and everyone involved in tennis.”