The Global Tennis Integrity Agency (GTIA) has penalized a former professional tennis player and an official for wagering on matches.
David Gorcic, a former Slovenian competitor, and Steven Nguyen, an inactive Australian representative, were both discovered placing bets on tennis matches. They both confessed to violating the regulations of the Tennis Anti-Corruption Program (TACP).
Gorcic, who achieved a peak ranking of 1399 globally in 2015, acknowledged placing wagers between 2017 and 2018. He has been prohibited from competing for six months, although three of those months are suspended. This implies he cannot participate from May 21st to August 20th. He was also assessed a $5,000 fine, but $3,500 of that is suspended.
Nguyen, who served as an umpire for junior, wheelchair, and W25 tournaments, was found wagering on tennis between 2021 and 2023. He has been banned for three months, commencing on May 23rd and concluding on August 22nd. He is also required to pay a $2,000 fine, with $1,400 of that suspended.
The GTIA did not provide any further information regarding the cases. However, they confirmed that Gorcic and Nguyen are prohibited from participating in or attending any tennis events managed by the GTIA.
The GTIA remains dedicated to eradicating corruption within tennis.
The global Tennis Integrity Agency (TIA) has recently declared a string of new penalties as part of its mission to fight corruption and betting-related wrongdoing.
Just last month, the TIA permanently prohibited Venezuelan official Armando Bellardi after he was discovered to have broken 26 rules of the Tennis Anti-Corruption Program (TACP).
Also in May, Italian athlete Emanuele Bastian confessed to wagering on tennis matches and was prohibited from playing for four months and two weeks. Meanwhile, Austrian wheelchair tennis player Nico Langmann was penalized for breaking betting sponsorship regulations.
Other recent cases include Alejandro Mendoza Crespo being permanently banned and Jorge Panta Errelos being prohibited for three years. Both cases were connected to a larger criminal organization in Belgium, whose leader, Grigor Sargisyan, was sentenced to five years in prison.
After the verdict, seven players were banned for different periods in November for breaking the TACP.
In the upcoming months, many other athletes are facing similar accusations.
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