The ITIA has capped a busy November by banning an ATP official for 10.5 years. [Image: Shutterstock.com]

ATP official sanctioned

The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) has slapped an Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) official from Slovenia with a 10.5-year suspension for match fixing.

The London-based integrity body took to X late last week to share its suspension of ATP bronze-badge official Marko Ducman:

According to the ITIA, the Slovenian international-level official confessed to four breaches of the Tennis Anti-Corruption Program (TACP). Ducman’s violations included betting on tennis matches he officiated on, and tampering with data from match-ups he was also involved in.

The ITIA also handed Ducman, who the body stated cooperated fully with its investigation, a substantial £60,000 ($75,000) fine, of which £45,000 ($56,740) is suspended.

Paying the price

According to the ITIA, Ducman agreed to the sanction which waivered his right to appeal before an independent Anti-Corruption Hearing Officer.

a likelihood that the Covered Person has committed a Major Offense”

The ITIA arrived at its judgment under a TACP regulation that states: “There is a likelihood that the Covered Person has committed a Major Offense and in the absence of a Provisional Suspension, the integrity of tennis would be undermined […]”

The ITIA provisionally suspended Ducman on September 8 and, as such, the time he’s already served was knocked off his sentence, meaning the official’s suspension will end March 7, 2034.  

The Slovakian, who has umpired at International Tennis Federation, Women’s Tennis Association, and ATP tournaments, is now banned from attending or officiating over any professional tennis event under the auspices of the aforementioned bodies, in addition to Wimbledon, the US Open, Roland Garros, the Australian Open, or any national tennis associations.

Body cracks the whip

Ducman’s suspension caps a busy November for the ITIA in which the upgraded former Tennis Integrity Unit issued sanctions to a total of 17 tennis players and officials.

One of the most eye-catching November suspensions was that of Kazakhstan’s Timur Khabibulin, who the ITIA banned from tennis for life and fined $60,000 for 21 charges related to match fixing.

the second-highest number of breaches for one individual.”

On November 16, while sentencing five individuals linked to a Belgian match-fixing ring, the ITIA banned Mexican tennis player Alberto Rojas Maldonado for “the second-highest number of breaches for one individual.” The ITIA stated Maldonaldo violated 92 TACP regulations and was pivotal in the corruption of other tennis players.

Unlike Ducman, who may return to tennis in the distant future, the ITIA banned Maldonaldo for life and hit him with its maximum penalty of $250,000.