- Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner ordered to remove Whoop bands at Australian Open
- Whoop CEO Will Ahmed spoke out on the issue, calling the situation “ridiculous.”
- A Whoop spokesperson also contacted TechRadar and reaffirmed their stance that “blocking access to personal health data does not protect the sport.”
Wow, these are some of the best (albeit most expensive) fitness trackers out there, especially from a recovery standpoint. Designed to assist and inform data-driven training techniques, Whoop bands are used by all types of top athletes around the world, including top tennis stars like current world number one player Aryna Sabalenka and current world number one player Carlos Alcaraz.
“The reason I wore that on court was because we received the email informing us that we got approval from the ITF to use this device. I didn’t know that the Grand Slams didn’t come to a conclusion.” Sabalenka told the press after her victory over Iva Jovic. “It’s just to keep track of my health.” Sabalenka, coincidentally, is a Whoop ambassador, so there may be an as-yet-unpublicized commercial element to the controversy.
Whoop CEO Will Ahmed posted the video of Alcaraz being asked to remove the tracker on social media and commented: “Ridiculous. Whoop is approved by the International Tennis Federation for use during matches and poses no safety risk.
“Let athletes measure their bodies. Data is not steroids!”
Ridiculous. Whoop is approved by the International Tennis Federation for use during matches and does not pose any security risk. Let athletes measure their bodies. Data is not steroids! https://t.co/fC3JX6VldmJanuary 25, 2026
Whoop’s official position.
I contacted Whoop to see what the company had to say. A spokesperson responded with the following statement:
“WHOOP believes that athletes have a fundamental right to understand their own performance and health, including during competition at events such as the Australian Open. WHOOP is approved by the International Tennis Federation for use in matches and does not represent safety, fairness or competitive risk.
“Blocking access to personal health data does not protect sport. WHOOP will continue to support athletes and our members to defend their right to their data.”
The role of data in athletics
Athletes today understand much more about their bodies than they did 20 or even 10 years ago. Beyond the use of stopwatches and pedometers, we now have devices such as the The best smartwatches and fitness trackers that can generate accurate information on strain and recovery. Athletes now have much more information to go on, helping them understand how and when to push their limits.
I can understand the temptation to use a Whoop during matches, not just during preparation, so that the athlete’s team understands the effort put in during and the recovery process after each match. There is no doubt that the increase in data collection affects athletes on and off the court.
However, if the International Tennis Federation authorized the use of Whoop on court, there is a clear disconnect between that decision and the ban on fitness trackers at this year’s Australian Open.
Whoop also appears to be operating within business rules. The Australian Open website also lists player sponsorship rules: “At the Australian Open, players may have up to two commercial (non-manufacturer) logos on their clothing, each no larger than three inches square.
“Manufacturers’ logos are treated separately and are allowed in additional positions (such as the front, back, or collar of the shirt), but must remain small. Shorts and skirts may carry limited manufacturer branding, while compression garments have their own narrow margins.”
It seems unlikely that the small Whoop logo violates these laws. You could argue that the design itself is quite iconic, but recently there has been a rise in Whoop clones, such as the Polar Loop and Amazfit Helio Strap.
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