Britain's Lawn Tennis Association has updated its rules to bar transgender women from competing in national and inter-club female competitions, the governing body said on Wednesday. The LTA said that while it was committed to making the sport welcoming and inclusive for everyone, it was responsible for ensuring fair competition. "It is clear that tennis and padel are gender-affected sports - the average man has an advantage when playing against the average woman," it said in a statement.

"This includes longer levers with which to reach and hit the ball and increased cardio-vascular capacity means being able to get around the court more easily.

"The current broad consensus, including the conclusion of the review carried out by the Sports Councils Equality Group, is that this advantage is likely to be retained to a significant degree in trans women, making competition potentially unfair."

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The LTA said the revised policy will come into effect on Jan. 25 and would cover 'specified competitions' involving individuals from different clubs, venues or counties up to national level events. "This policy helps ensure there is a common national standard for all these competitions which is fair,' it said. International events such as Wimbledon, WTA tournaments held in Britain and International Tennis Federation (ITF) events are out of the scope of the LTA's rules.

Non-specified events within clubs, ranging from social play to club championships, will be able to be fully inclusive with venues able to determine their own policy.

The WTA Tour Gender Participation Policy currently permits transgender women to participate if they have declared their gender as female for a minimum of four years, have lowered testosterone levels and agree to testing procedures.

Disclaimer:&nbsp;This story has been published from a news agency feed with minimal edits to adhere to WION's style guide. The headline may have been changed to better reflect the content of the story or to make it more suitable for WION audience.

Britain's Lawn Tennis Association has updated its rules to bar transgender women from competing in national and inter-club female competitions, the governing body said on Wednesday.

Britain's Lawn Tennis Association has updated its rules to bar transgender women from competing in national and inter-club female competitions, the governing body said on Wednesday. The LTA said that while it was committed to making the sport welcoming and inclusive for everyone, it was responsible for ensuring fair competition. "It is clear that tennis and padel are gender-affected sports - the average man has an advantage when playing against the average woman," it said in a statement. "This includes longer levers with which to reach and hit the ball and increased cardio-vascular capacity means being able to get around the court more easily. "The current broad consensus, including the conclusion of the review carried out by the Sports Councils Equality Group, is that this advantage is likely to be retained to a significant degree in trans women, making competition potentially unfair." Also read: Atlanta Hawks comes from behind to beat New York Knicks to reach NBA Cup semis The LTA said the revised policy will come into effect on Jan. 25 and would cover 'specified competitions' involving individuals from different clubs, venues or counties up to national level events. "This policy helps ensure there is a common national standard for all these competitions which is fair,' it said. International events such as Wimbledon, WTA tournaments held in Britain and International Tennis Federation (ITF) events are out of the scope of the LTA's rules. Non-specified events within clubs, ranging from social play to club championships, will be able to be fully inclusive with venues able to determine their own policy. The WTA Tour Gender Participation Policy currently permits transgender women to participate if they have declared their gender as female for a minimum of four years, have lowered testosterone levels and agree to testing procedures. Disclaimer: This story has been published from a news agency feed with minimal edits to adhere to WION's style guide. The headline may have been changed to better reflect the content of the story or to make it more suitable for WION audience.

Britain's LTA to ban transgender women from some female events to ensure 'fair competition'

The ATP on Wednesday fined Britain's Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) 820,000 pounds ($1 million) for banning male players from Russia and Belarus from this year's summer grasscourt events ahead of the Championships over Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. Players were banned from the UK grass-court tournaments held in the build-up to Wimbledon, which became the first Grand Slam tournament to ban individual competitors from the two countries -- a move that was condemned by the men's and women's tours.

"The LTA is deeply disappointed with this," the LTA said in a statement.

"The ATP, in its finding, has shown no recognition of the exceptional circumstances created by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, or the international sporting community and UK Government's response to that invasion.

"The ATP appear to regard this matter as a straightforward breach of their rules -- with a surprising lack of empathy shown for the situation in Ukraine, and a clear lack of understanding of the unique circumstances the LTA faced."

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The ATP had said in April that the "unilateral decision" by Wimbledon to exclude players from Russia and Belarus was unfair and could potentially set a damaging precedent for the game.

"We stand by our original position on this matter, that unilateral decision-making by members of the ATP Tour threatens our ability to operate as a global sport," the ATP said in a statement.

"We believe that the measures taken protect the long-term future of our game and its commitment to merit-based participation, without discrimination, for individual athletes."

UK Culture Secretary Michelle Donelan said on Wednesday that the vast majority of the international sporting community had stood "shoulder to shoulder" in condemning Russian President Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine.

"The UK has taken a world-leading role to build this international response," Donelan said. "We are clear that sport cannot be used to legitimise this deadly invasion, and that athletes representing the Russian or Belarusian states should be banned from competing in other countries.

"Despite widespread condemnation, the international tennis tours are determined to be outcasts in this, with investment in the growth of our domestic game hampered as a result.

"This is the wrong move by the ATP and WTA. I urge them to think carefully about the message this sends and to reconsider."

Earlier this year, the LTA was slapped with a fine of 620,000 pounds by the WTA, which governs women's tennis.

"The financial impact of both this (ATP) fine and the WTA's fine will have a material impact on the LTA's ability to develop and host tennis in this country," the LTA said.

"We had intended to host a number of ATP Challenger level events to give more opportunities to lower ranked players in the first quarter of 2023 and will now not be able to do this, particularly given the possibility of further fines.

"We will carefully consider our response and we await the outcome of our appeal against the WTA's decision and sanction."

The ATP on Wednesday fined Britain's Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) 820,000 pounds ($1 million) for banning male players from Russia and Belarus from this year's summer grasscourt events ahead of the Championships over Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

The ATP on Wednesday fined Britain's Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) 820,000 pounds ($1 million) for banning male players from Russia and Belarus from this year's summer grasscourt events ahead of the Championships over Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. Players were banned from the UK grass-court tournaments held in the build-up to Wimbledon, which became the first Grand Slam tournament to ban individual competitors from the two countries -- a move that was condemned by the men's and women's tours. "The LTA is deeply disappointed with this," the LTA said in a statement. "The ATP, in its finding, has shown no recognition of the exceptional circumstances created by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, or the international sporting community and UK Government's response to that invasion. "The ATP appear to regard this matter as a straightforward breach of their rules -- with a surprising lack of empathy shown for the situation in Ukraine, and a clear lack of understanding of the unique circumstances the LTA faced." ALSO READ: Tiger Woods reveals 'tough road' ahead in recovery from foot injury The ATP had said in April that the "unilateral decision" by Wimbledon to exclude players from Russia and Belarus was unfair and could potentially set a damaging precedent for the game. "We stand by our original position on this matter, that unilateral decision-making by members of the ATP Tour threatens our ability to operate as a global sport," the ATP said in a statement. "We believe that the measures taken protect the long-term future of our game and its commitment to merit-based participation, without discrimination, for individual athletes." UK Culture Secretary Michelle Donelan said on Wednesday that the vast majority of the international sporting community had stood "shoulder to shoulder" in condemning Russian President Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine. "The UK has taken a world-leading role to build this international response," Donelan said. "We are clear that sport cannot be used to legitimise this deadly invasion, and that athletes representing the Russian or Belarusian states should be banned from competing in other countries. "Despite widespread condemnation, the international tennis tours are determined to be outcasts in this, with investment in the growth of our domestic game hampered as a result. "This is the wrong move by the ATP and WTA. I urge them to think carefully about the message this sends and to reconsider." Earlier this year, the LTA was slapped with a fine of 620,000 pounds by the WTA, which governs women's tennis. "The financial impact of both this (ATP) fine and the WTA's fine will have a material impact on the LTA's ability to develop and host tennis in this country," the LTA said. "We had intended to host a number of ATP Challenger level events to give more opportunities to lower ranked players in the first quarter of 2023 and will now not be able to do this, particularly given the possibility of further fines. "We will carefully consider our response and we await the outcome of our appeal against the WTA's decision and sanction."

ATP fines Britain's LTA $1 million for banning Russian, Belarusian players

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Britain's LTA to ban transgender women from some female events to ensure 'fair competition'

ATP fines Britain's LTA $1 million for banning Russian, Belarusian players