ITF

42 Spring 2022 ITF World NEWS R O U N D - U P S P R I N G 2 0 2 2 Tennis family unites for Tennis Plays For Peace in support of Ukraine In March, the WTA, ATP, ITF, and the four Grand Slams – the Australian Open, Roland Garros, Wimbledon and the US Open – announced an initiative to support the humanitarian relief efforts for the war in Ukraine. Following unified condemnation of Russia's invasion of Ukraine in a statement issued by the seven organisations on 1 March, further efforts to support those affected by the crisis continue to take place as part of the Tennis Plays For Peace campaign. Each of the seven entities donated $100,000 USD to the humanitarian relief efforts, with donations supporting Global Giving's Ukraine Crisis Relief Fund, which has been providing immediate help on the ground across the region, as well as the Ukraine Tennis Federation. Ukrainian tennis players Elina Svitolina and Sergiy Stakhovsky, who himself returned to Ukraine to join the reserve army, produced a powerful and emotive video with a message of hope for their country. Tournaments and tennis federations across the world, along with the entire playing spectrum – from juniors, seniors and wheelchair athletes – were sent a digital toolkit to further drive awareness and support the relief efforts. All seven organisations thank players, tournaments, staff and fans for their incredible efforts. Donations to Global Giving in support of the humanitarian relief efforts can be made here. Fairweather promoted to ITF Chief Executive Officer Earlier this year, the ITF confirmed the promotion of Kelly Fairweather to Chief Executive Officer (CEO) with effect from 1 January 2022. Fairweather was formerly Chief Operating Officer (COO). A key element of ITF2024 strategy, the driving force behind the ITF's progress and modernisation since David Haggerty was elected President in 2015, has been a focus on good governance. Under Haggerty's leadership, the ITF Board approved a proposal from the Governance Taskforce to separate the President and CEO roles, historically held by a single person, to ensure an even greater balance of powers and accountability in leadership. Fairweather, an experienced executive, former Sports Director of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and CEO of International Hockey Federation (IHF) joined the ITF as COO in January 2017. Fairweather's main remit from the outset has been to drive growth of the sport through the delivery of the eight pillars of ITF2024. He will lead ITF Senior Leadership and its Directors responsible for the five key divisions that comprise the ITF organisation, notably, Presidential; Integrity & Legal; Major Events & Sports Strategy; Tours & Pathway; Finance, IT & People. "The ITF is undergoing transformation in key areas," said Fairweather. "We are in a position to explore new avenues of growth and ways of interacting with our sport. "Our global tennis data informs our strategy for the development of our sport, our business and our fanbase. These are challenging and exciting times, so we need to be bold. We have set ourselves the ambitious goal to report 120 million players on this planet by 2030." For further information relating to ITF2024 please click the link below. Earlier in March, the ITF announced the immediate suspension of the Russian Tennis Federation (RTF) and Belarus Tennis Federation (BTF) from ITF membership and from participation in ITF team competition until further notice. The ITF remains in close contact with the Ukraine Tennis Federation and stands in solidarity with the people of Ukraine. NEWS ROUND-UP F U RT H E R I N FO R M AT I O N

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