## Belgian Tennis Stars Face Ban Amidst Corruption Probe
Three Belgian tennis professionals, Arthur De Greef, Romain Barbosa, and Alex Wittemann, have been temporarily barred from competing in any authorized tennis tournaments. This action follows an inquiry by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) and a parallel criminal investigation.
De Greef, the most accomplished of the trio, achieved a peak ATP singles ranking of 113 and even participated in the 2017 French Open.
The suspension, imposed by Professor Richard McLaren, the Administrative Hearing Officer, prohibits the players from taking part in any tennis events governed by the ATP and ITF until the investigation concludes.
While the ITIA has not disclosed the specific nature of the alleged infractions, they have stated that a temporary suspension can be implemented if a player is accused of a criminal offense or is subject to criminal proceedings. These accusations can also be classified as a “serious offense” by the ITIA.
A “serious offense” is defined as any violation that could lead to a suspension exceeding six months or a penalty exceeding $10,000.
Since its rebranding as the International Tennis Integrity Agency, the ITIA has made a number of suspension decisions.
In recent times, Argentine athlete Nicolas Areche was also given a comparable temporary suspension for undisclosed corrupt actions.
Earlier in the current month, the ITIA levied a 10-year prohibition on Kazakhstan’s Roman Khasanov for confessing to numerous match-fixing occurrences.
This year, Argentina’s Franco Feret, Slovakian competitor Barbara Palcatova, and two Russian competitors have also been prohibited from participating.
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