The Global Tennis Integrity Agency (GTIA) has penalized a previous professional competitor and a referee for supposed involvement in betting-related wrongdoings.
David Goršič, a former Slovenian competitor, and Steven Nguyen, a previous Australian national referee, were accused. Both individuals confessed to engaging in tennis betting while under the supervision of the Tennis Anti-Corruption Program (TACP).
Goršič, who achieved a career-high singles ranking of 1399 in 2015, confessed to betting between 2017 and 2018.
He will be prohibited for six months, with three months suspended. This implies he will be ineligible to compete from May 21st to August 20th. He was also fined $5,000 (£3,926/€4,660), with $3,500 suspended.
Nguyen, who served as a judge for ITF junior, wheelchair, and W25 events, was discovered to have engaged in tennis betting between 2021 and 2023. He will be prohibited for three months, from May 23rd to August 22nd, and fined $2,000, with $1,400 suspended.
The GTIA did not reveal any additional information about the cases. However, it did confirm that these penalties prohibit Goršič and Nguyen from participating in or attending any tennis events authorized or sanctioned by GTIA members.
The GTIA will continue to combat corruption in tennis.
The global tennis integrity watchdog, the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA), has been taking a firm stance against corrupt practices and gambling violations within the sport.
In recent times, a Venezuelan official, Armando Bellardi, was permanently barred from participating in tennis after being accused of breaching the Tennis Anti-Corruption Program (TACP) on numerous occasions, a total of 26 times.
In the month of May, an Italian tennis player, Emanuele Bastian, faced a suspension of four months and two weeks for admitting to placing bets on tennis matches. Concurrently, an Austrian wheelchair tennis player, Nico Langmann, was penalized for violating gambling sponsorship regulations.
Other recent cases include the lifetime ban imposed on Alejandro Mendoza Crespo and the three-year ban imposed on Jorge Panta Errelos. Both of these cases were linked to a criminal organization operating in Belgium, whose leader, Grigor Sargysan, was sentenced to a five-year prison term.
Following the sentencing, seven players were prohibited from participating in tennis for varying durations in November. They were found to have violated the TACP.
Since then, a significant number of other players have been accused of similar transgressions.