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The WTA will now protect the classifications of tennis professionals who take off the time of the competition to suffer fertility protection procedures, the tour announced on Wednesday.
The measure led by players will allow tennis players to use a special entry classification (SER) for up to three tournaments if they choose to undergo a “Fertility Protection Procedure as egg or freezing of embryos. ”
A shadow of a player in the open of France in Paris. (Istock)
“By presenting this new form of classification protection, the WTA helps support and train athletes to women to balance a professional sports career with the planning and the beginning of a family at a time of their choice,” the tour in a press release said Wednesday.
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The new measure adds to the WTA family approach program, which already includes classification protection during pregnancies or other media and postpartum support. It also follows the announcement of the WTA in March that tennis players can receive 12 months of paid maternity leave.
“I am incredibly proud of our sport by recognizing the importance of fertility treatments for female athletes,” 2017 Us open Champion Sloane Stephens said in a statement provided by the tour.
Sloane Stephens returns a ball to greet Minnen (not in the photo) during the game of the first round in the Sobeys Stadium on August 6, 2024. (John E. Sokolowski/USA Today Sports)
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“For any woman, the conversation of family life versus a career is nuanced and complex. The WTA has now created a safe space for players to explore options and make the best decisions for themselves. It is really innovative and will train this generation, and the future generations of the players, continue with the sport they love without having to commit.”
Talking with BBC, Stephens explained his own experiences and the challenges he faced under the previous rules.
“The first time I did it, I hurried, and I was overweight and not happy and very stressed,” he told The Outlet. “The second time I did, I adopted a totally different approach to be able to be in a better way. I could undergo surgery. I could have more time to recover.
The WTA Tour logo on the network at the Mutua Madrid Open in the Magic Box on April 23, 2025 in Madrid, Spain. (Robert Prangy/Getty Images)
“Having the protected classification there, so that players do not feel forced to return early and risk their health again, it is the best possible.”
Being will be based on the average of 12 weeks of the player’s WTA classification from eight weeks before the start of his competition period.
