Feminine gamers who select to bear a fertility safety process will probably be allowed to take time away from the game and return to aggressive motion with a protected rating, the governing physique of ladies’s tennis has stated.
The brand new rule goals to assist girls athletes to stability their household targets and profession ambitions, and comes three months after the WTA provided gamers as much as 12 months of paid maternity depart for the primary time.
“The brand new rule signifies that gamers can now take time away from skilled tennis for a fertility safety process, similar to egg or embryo freezing, and safely return to competitors with a protected rating,” the WTA stated in an announcement on Wednesday.
“Eligible gamers will obtain a Particular Entry Rating (SER), which can be utilized to enter as much as three tournaments, based mostly on the 12-week common of their WTA Rating from eight weeks previous to the beginning of their out-of-competition interval.”
Sloane Stephens, the 2017 US Open champion, has beforehand referred to as for egg freezing to be recognised as a protected rating exercise, and referred to as Wednesday’s announcement a “ground-breaking” transfer.
“I am extremely happy with our sport in recognising the significance of fertility remedies for feminine athletes. For any lady, the dialog of household life versus a profession is nuanced and sophisticated,” the previous world quantity three stated.
“The WTA has now created a secure house for gamers to discover choices and to make the very best selections for themselves.”
The WTA additionally stated gamers will profit from paid maternity depart and grants for fertility safety by means of the WTA Maternity Fund sponsored by the Saudi Public Funding Fund.
