Tennis Official Suspended For 16 Years Following 17 Anti-Corruption Breaches

The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) has announced that a Bulgarian official has been suspended after breaking several parts of the Tennis-Anti-Corruption Program (TACP).

The ITIA does a huge amount of work to try and keep the sport free from any bad actors. The two main broad areas that it covers are anti-corruption charges and anti-doping charges.

These issues have affected some of the biggest names in the sport. The biggest recent example was two-time Grand Slam champion Simona Halep receiving a four-year ban for anti-doping charges.

The Romanian has appealed that suspension, and Halep says she will end her career if the suspension is upheld. Despite this, she remains adamant that she is innocent, with Halep stating she still dreams about playing in the Paris Olympics this year.

An example from the ATP Tour is Mikael Ymer's case. The Swede was suspended for 18 months for missing three anti-doping tests. Ymer subsequently elected to retire from the sport as a result of not having the decision overturned.

However, it is also important to catch lesser-known names, which include those who are not players, but officials overseeing tournaments. That is what the ITIA has done by suspending the Bulgarian official Stefan Milanov.

The charges relate to five matches that Milanov umpired in 2021. He is guilty of five breaches of three elements of the TACP, and two more of another part, adding up to the 17 breaches in total.

This is also not Milanov's first offense. He was suspended for six months in 2022 for betting offenses. The Bulgarian was also given a $75,000 fine for those breaches.

This much longer suspension will run from December 28, 2023 (the date of the decision) to December 27, 2039. It is clear that Milanov's career in tennis is now effectively over as a result of this suspension.