The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) has banned Spanish player Aaron Cortes for 15 years after he was found guilty of a series of corruption charges.
Cortes admitted to 35 breaches of the ITIA Tennis Anti-Corruption Programme (TACP). Charges relate to activity between 2016 and 2018.
Breaches include contriving the outcome of events, accepting money to impact outcomes of events and failing to report corrupt approaches. The ITIA also said Cortes wagered on tennis and provided money to tournament officials in exchange for a wild card.
The 29-year-old, who had a career-high world singles ranking of 955 in September 2017, co-operated fully with the ITIA investigation. He also accepted an agreed sanction and waived the right to a hearing before an independent anti-corruption hearing officer.
As a result, Cortes will be banned from 27 March 2024 until 26 March 2039. He has also been ordered to pay a $75,000 (£59,823/€70,039) fine, with $56,250 of this suspended.
During the ban Cortes cannot play in, coach at or attend events authorised or sanctioned by ITIA members or national associations.
ITIA tackling tennis corruption
Cortes is the latest individual to be banned over corruption in tennis. The ITIA has issued a series of sanctions in recent weeks as part of a crackdown on such activity.
Such sanctions are not limited to players, with the ITIA also taking action against officials.
This month, Italian official Manuel Guion was suspended for period of five years and six months following breaches of the TACP. The ban runs from 5 February 2024 to 4 August 2029.
In March, Croatian official Marko Stojanovic was also suspended from the sport for five years and six months. This came after the ITIA identified multiple breaches of the TACP, including manipulating match data to facilitate betting.
Other action includes banning Italian player Andrea Rita for 15 months for breaching its rules on betting. France’s Maxence Broville was also banned for seven years after he failed to co-operate with an anti-corruption investigation.
Wider issues facing tennis
Corruption is just one problem facing the ITIA, with other issues also cropping up in recent weeks.
Earlier this week, the ITIA sanctioned former player and Peruvian tournament director and Davis Cup captain Luis Horna for breaching betting sponsorship rules. Horna co-operated fully with the investigation and did not contest the charge.
Meanwhile, Swedish player Dragos Nicolae Madaras was suspended for four years and six months. This came after Madaras failed to submit a personal device for examination when issued with a request to do so.
