Serbian tennis player banned for 24 years over match-fixing

Summarised from 4 outlets · Updated 15 Oct, 18:44 · Archive

Serbian player Stefan Milicevic has been given a 24-year suspension from tennis for match-fixing and recruiting other players into a corrupt network.

Stefan Milicevic, a Serbian tennis player, has been banned from the sport for 24 years following charges of match-fixing and recruiting other players into a corrupt network. The 29-year-old, who reached a career-high world ranking of 1,338th in 2014 and played on the lower rungs of the professional ladder, was charged with fixing six matches, including five in which he was competing. He was also charged with attempting to fix a further six matches between 2022 and 2024.

The International Tennis Integrity Authority imposed the ban, which is one of the most severe punishments outside of a lifetime ban. Milicevic will be unable to play in, coach at, or attend any events organised or sanctioned by World Tennis, WTA, ATP, the Grand Slams, or any national association. The ban will last until October 2050, by which time he will be 53 years old.

The severity of the sanction was partly due to Milicevic's lack of cooperation with the investigation. The ITIA said he did not engage with the process despite seven separate attempts to contact him through multiple channels. He also received a £53,000 fine. According to the Independent, Milicevic played college tennis at the University of Minnesota and was a coach at DePaul University in Chicago.

How it is being reported

• Serbian tennis player handed 24-year ban for match-fixingA Serbian tennis player has been handed a massive 24-year ban for match-fixing.Sky Sports · 15 Oct, 19:46
• Serbian tennis player hit with 24-year ban in match-fixing scandalA tennis player has been banned from the sport for 24 years after fixing matches and recruiting other players to do so in what was a "corrupt network."New York Post · 15 Oct, 19:36
• Serbian tennis player banned for 24 years for match-fixingStefan Milicevic is banned from being involved in tennis until 2050 after fixing matches and recruiting fellow players into ‘a corrupt network’Independent Sport · 15 Oct, 18:29
• Serb player banned until 2050 for tennis match-fixingStefan Milicevic is given a 24-year suspension from tennis - one of the most severe punishments outside of a lifetime ban - for match-fixing.BBC Sport · 15 Oct, 17:27

In this story: Stefan Milicevic · International Tennis Integrity Authority · Serbia

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