Last Updated on 06/18/2023 by てんしょく飯
Miyu Kato (Xymax) and Aldila Sutjiadi (Indonesia) were disqualified from the women’s doubles competition at the French Open, one of the four major tennis tournaments.
Following the rejection of Kato’s lawsuit by the tournament organizers, an effort to collect donations for the amount of prize money she was supposed to win was launched overseas.
In this incident, Kato returned a ball toward the opponent’s court in the middle of the match, and it hit the ball girl. The referee issued a warning, but after her opponents Marie Bouzková (Czech Republic) and Sara Sorribes Tormo (Spain) protested, the ruling changed and a severe penalty of disqualification was given.
Kato appealed against the punishment to the tournament organizers, but was unsuccessfully rejected, as he revealed on social networking sites. In the meantime, a movement in support of Kato is spreading around the world.
A signature drive has just started to demand the withdrawal of the punishment, and this is followed by a drive to collect donations from fans around the world for the prize money that was confiscated due to the disqualification.
M. Rose, a resident of California, U.S.A., organized this activity on the overseas donation activity site “gofundme. About the movement to support Kato, he said, “Unfortunately, the ball hit the ball girl in the chest. Due to her disqualification, Kato will lose all the prize money she won for winning the second round. Please help her,” he explained. He also called for support for Kato, criticizing the French side’s response, saying, “If you think she was punished too harshly, please donate the amount of money you think is appropriate for this controversial decision.
The Japan Tennis Association easily indicated that it would accept Kato’s punishment, but support for Kato continues to grow around the world.
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