Vallejo Fined by Roland Garros: The Sexist Remarks About Umpire Carvalho

Roland Garros has announced a "significant sanction" against Adolfo Daniel Vallejo following the Paraguayan's remarks about umpire Ana Carvalho, made to Clay Magazine after his second-round loss to seventeen-year-old Frenchman Moise Kouame, 6-3, 7-5, 3-6, 2-6, 7-6 (10-8) in four hours and fifty-six minutes on Suzanne-Lenglen.

Vallejo, ATP No. 71, spoke bluntly to the Latin American magazine: "This kind of match should be umpired by a man. For a woman it's very difficult to do it, because the crowd is very annoying and you need a lot of courage to stand up to them". The Brazilian silver-badge umpire was officiating a match made incandescent by the comeback of the young home favorite, backed by a Parisian crowd that was anything but neutral.

The joint statement from the French Federation and the tournament arrived on Friday, May 29, calling the remarks "unacceptable": "An umpire's competence is not determined by gender, but by professionalism and the ability to officiate at the highest levels". At the same time, the tournament expressed its support for Carvalho.

A few hours after the fine was announced, Vallejo posted a half-step-back on social media: "I want to clarify that my comments were not in the spirit in which they were interpreted. I have respect for the umpire and the work she did. After a five-hour battle I was very fired up and emotional. I apologize". The Paraguayan added that he had not held her responsible for the defeat and wanted to "learn from this situation".

Ana Carvalho, true to the discretion that the role demands, has not made any public statements. The fact remains that the chair umpire had been praised for handling the crowd during the match, and it is precisely there, in the space between a recognized professional performance and a bitter defeat, that Vallejo's remark tripped over its real meaning.