WTA and Saudi PIF to provide paid maternity leave to tennis players
Indian Wells, California –
Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) is funding a joint initiative with the WTA for paid maternity leave of "up to 12 months" for players on the women's tennis circuit, the two organizations announced Thursday.
The PIF WTA Maternity Fund Program "will offer benefits to more than 320 eligible WTA players," the WTA said in a statement.
"WTA players will for the first time receive paid maternity leave up to 12 months, and have access to grants for fertility treatments to build families, as well as other benefits," it read.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Japan Today
2 days ago
- Japan Today
Gauff eyes French Open crown after crushing Boisson
tennis By Martyn WOOD Coco Gauff said she will try to downplay the magnitude of Saturday's French Open final against Aryna Sabalenka and learn from her runner-up finish at Roland Garros three years ago. The 21-year-old American swept into her third Grand Slam singles final with a 6-1, 6-2 win that put an abrupt end to surprise French hero Lois Boisson's improbable run in Paris. Gauff lost the 2022 French Open final to Iga Swiatek before beating Sabalenka a year later to capture her first major title at the U.S. Open. She said she is a much more confident player than the teenager beaten in her maiden Grand Slam final. "My first final here I was super nervous, and I kind of wrote myself off before the match even happened," said Gauff, the world number two behind Sabalenka. "Obviously here I have a lot more confidence just from playing a Grand Slam final before and doing well in one. "I think going into Saturday I'll just give it my best shot and try to be as calm and relaxed as possible." Gauff said the experience of losing to Swiatek three years ago gave her fresh perspective she hopes will serve her well for Saturday's showpiece. "Everybody is dealing with way bigger things in life than losing a final," she said. "I'm sure there are hundreds of players that would kill to win or lose a final, so just knowing that, making me realise how lucky and privileged I am to be in this position. "At first I thought it would be the end of the world if I lost, and you know, the sun still rose the next day. So knowing, regardless of the result, the sun will still rise." Gauff dominated from the outset against Boisson to extinguish the host nation's hopes of a first French Open winner since Mary Pierce in 2000. A much tighter contest likely awaits her against Sabalenka. She has a 5-5 record against the Belarusian but lost to her on clay in the Madrid final last month. Gauff will need to be at her best to counter Sabalenka's power. The 27-year-old cranked it up in the third set to blow away three-time defending champion Iga Swiatek in the first semi-final and snap the Pole's 26-match winning streak at the French Open. "She can come up with some big shots and big winners pretty much at all areas of the court," said Gauff. "She's a fighter as well, she's going to stay in the match regardless of the scoreline." "Anything can happen on Saturday. But I'm looking forward to it, and glad to be going up against a world number one too," added Gauff. For Boisson, 22, the defeat marked a disappointing finish to a remarkable first Grand Slam appearance, a year after missing out because of a serious knee injury. The world number 361 had never played a top-50 opponent before this week. Boisson dumped out two players in the top 10 in third-ranked Jessica Pegula and world number six Mirra Andreeva to set up her last-four clash with Gauff. But Gauff proved a hurdle too far for a player who only had one WTA tour-level win before the start of the tournament. "She played really, really good. She was just too good for me today, and that's it," said Boisson. © 2025 AFP
Japan Times
30-05-2025
- Japan Times
Saudi officials working to keep Cristiano Ronaldo in Saudi Pro League
Saudi officials are in "difficult" talks to keep Cristiano Ronaldo in the country, a source with knowledge of the negotiations said Thursday, after the star player suggested he was leaving Al Nassr. The Portuguese superstar, whose arrival in 2023 heralded a rush of late-career players to the oil-rich country, could transfer to Al Hilal and feature in the upcoming Club World Club, the source said. "There is an ongoing difficult negotiation to convince Ronaldo to stay and play" in the Saudi Pro League next season, said the source from the Public Investment Fund (PIF), a major investor in Saudi soccer. "First option is a transfer to Al Hilal with an opportunity to feature in the FIFA Club World Cup or to Asia champion Al Ahli," the source added. The oil-funded PIF, the sovereign wealth fund behind a number of big-ticket Saudi investments, controls a group of Pro League clubs including Al Nassr, Al Hilal and Al Ahli. Ronaldo posted "This chapter is over" hours after the Saudi Pro League wrapped up this week, with Al Nassr finishing third and without a trophy once again. A special transfer window opens from June 1 to 10 to allow the 32 teams involved in the newly expanded Club World Cup to sign players. Last week, FIFA President Gianni Infantino said "there are discussions" over Ronaldo playing at the tournament in the United States from June 14. Ronaldo, 40, joined Al Nassr in early 2023 from Manchester United, and his contract expires at the end of next month. "Ronaldo's presence is a key factor in developing the Saudi league in the last two years and a half," the PIF source said. "He opens the door for elite and young players to come to Saudi Arabia." Ronaldo's announcement comes just months after Brazilian star Neymar ended his injury-plagued 18-month stay in Saudi Arabia in January, after playing just seven times for Al Hilal — on a reported salary of around $104 million a year. Although Ronaldo was the Pro League's top scorer with 25 goals, he has been unable to win a Saudi or continental trophy with Al Nassr, which lost in the Asian Champions League semifinals last month. Last year, the five-time Ballon d'Or winner said he could end his career with Al Nassr, the Riyadh team favored by a number of Saudi royals. Meanwhile, Ronaldo's great rival Lionel Messi will play at the Club World Cup with Inter Miami. "And Ronaldo might play for one of the teams as well at the Club World Cup," Infantino said during a recent interview with YouTuber and streamer IShowSpeed. "There are discussions with some clubs, so if any club is watching and is interested in hiring Ronaldo for the Club World Cup ... who knows, who knows." Saudi Arabia has shaken up soccer by spending heavily on stars from Europe, starting with Ronaldo's move, and the desert nation will host the World Cup in 2034.
Japan Today
28-05-2025
- Japan Today
Alcaraz, Swiatek and Sabalenka reach French Open third round
Carlos Alcaraz has lost just one match on clay this year tennis By Martyn WOOD Reigning champion Carlos Alcaraz overcame a minor blip to reach the French Open third round on Wednesday as women's title rivals Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka made short work of their opponents. Second seed Alcaraz came through 6-1, 4-6, 6-1, 6-2 against Hungarian Fabian Marozsan to earn his 17th win in 18 matches on clay this season. "Second set, he started to play better and he didn't miss a lot so it was a little bit difficult to deal with his game," said Alcaraz. "I'm really happy I stayed strong and refreshed myself. In the third set, I started to play better and better which helped me have a really good last two sets." Alcaraz, a four-time Grand Slam winner, goes on to face Bosnian journeyman Damir Dzumhur for a place in the last 16. In the women's draw, Swiatek continued her bid for a fourth straight Roland Garros crown as she outclassed fellow former U.S. Open champion Emma Raducanu. The Pole beat Raducanu 6-1, 6-2 to make it five wins in as many meetings with the Briton. She racked up her 23rd consecutive victory at Roland Garros to improve her career record at the tournament to 37-2. Swiatek is bidding to become the first woman to win four consecutive French Open titles since Suzanne Lenglen 102 years ago. The 23-year-old arrived in Paris under a slight cloud, having not reached a WTA final since lifting the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen last year, but has made serene progress through the first two rounds. "Honestly, I just love playing here. This place inspires me and that makes me work harder," said Swiatek, who also captured the trophy as a teenager in 2020. The fifth seed will play Romania's Jaqueline Cristian for a place in the last 16. Swiatek's slide down the rankings has left her in the same half of the draw as world number one Sabalenka, last year's runner-up Jasmine Paolini and Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen. Sabalenka shook off a sluggish start to blow past Switzerland's Jil Teichmann. After dropping serve early in the first set, Sabalenka won 11 of the final 12 games to power to a 6-3, 6-1 win. "It doesn't matter what the scoreboard says, she really made me work for every point," said Sabalenka, who has conceded just five games through two rounds. The Belarusian has never reached the French Open final and is hoping to banish the memories of a painful quarterfinal loss to Mirra Andreeva in 2024. Paolini moved into the third round as she brushed aside Ajla Tomljanovic 6-3, 6-3 to stretch her winning streak to eight matches following her triumph at the Italian Open. The fourth seed from Italy advances to play Ukraine's Yuliia Starodubtseva. Zheng punched her ticket to the last 32 with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Colombia's Emiliana Arango. The Chinese star faces another Grand Slam debutant in the next round, 18-year-old Victoria Mboko of Canada. Ukrainian 13th seed Elina Svitolina and US 16th seed Amanda Anisimova also progressed. Twice former French Open runner-up Casper Ruud was the biggest casualty on Wednesday, crashing out in four sets to Portugal's Nuno Borges. Seventh seed Ruud won the first set against world number 41 Borges but was hampered by a knee injury as he slumped to a 2-6, 6-4, 6-1, 6-0 defeat. "I actually felt it quite early in the first set," said Ruud, uncertain whether he would be fit for Wimbledon. "It's hopefully nothing too serious." There were no such problems for in-form Italian eighth seed Lorenzo Musetti, who raced past Colombian lucky loser Daniel Elahi Galan 6-4, 6-0, 6-4. Musetti has reached at least the semi-finals in all three Masters 1000 events on clay in 2025. He will next play Argentina's Mariano Navone. Stefanos Tsitsipas, the 20th seed, suffered his earliest French Open exit in seven years as the 2021 runner-up lost in four sets to Matteo Gigante. The Italian qualifier goes through to face Ben Shelton, who received a walkover as Hugo Gaston pulled out with an injury. U.S. 12th seed Tommy Paul recovered from two sets down to advance, while Russian 24th seed Karen Khachanov also won in five sets. Denmark's Holger Rune, the only man to beat Alcaraz on clay this year in the Barcelona final, plays American wild card Emilio Nava in the night match. © 2025 AFP
