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One of the only female darts players to beat a man in a televised event was banned in a controversial ruling.
Anna Dobromyslova became one of the first female darts players to beat a man in a televised darts tournament, when she saw off Vincent van der Voort in the Grand Slam of Darts in 2009 – four years after Deta Hedman's historic win over Aaron Turner.
The Russian was making a name for herself in the men's game after defeating Van der Voort in a 5-4 victory. In fact, she had already accepted an invitation to compete on the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) circuit in 2008.
It was a move that certainly got people talking, with former world champion Eric Bristow criticising the decision to hand a wildcard to Dobromyslova, who was the reigning BDO women's world champion at the time.
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"There are a lot of top players who are not very happy about it," Bristow told BBC London. "They are paying a lot of money to travel around the world and she's just been invited."
He added: "If Anastasia wants to join the PDC, travel the world earning ranking points and earn her way through then we could have five women in it next year and no one could complain."
As a result, Dobromyslova decided against defending her BDO title, instead taking on Remco van Eijden in the preliminary round of the PDC World Championship at Alexandra Palace – a game she lost 5-3.
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Despite suffering defeat, Dobromyslova became the second woman in history to compete against a male player in the tournament.
The Russian would spend two years competing on the PDC circuit before making a much-anticipated return to the BDO and WDF in 2011, where she is a three-time world champion.
Dobromyslova's trophy-laden run in the sport inspired many women to play darts, and back in 2018, she returned to the PDC World Championship stage for the first time in a decade, where she came up against Ryan Joyce in the first round.
"I prefer playing against men because they try so hard against you,’ she told Metro ahead of the match. "Some play even better, but some feel too much pressure, but it’s always nice to compete against men."
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"Some players can be a bit intimidated, some will step up another gear; you just have to see how lucky you are," added Dobromyslova, who would later suffer a 3-0 defeat to Joyce.
Anastasia Dobromyslova banned from playing in World Darts Federation (WDF)
Dobromyslova's career has somewhat stalled in recent years, however, after she was prevented from playing in the World Darts Federation (WDF) due to a nationality-based ban.
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Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the WDF decided to ban all Russian darts players from their tournaments.
In March 2022, they announced that, based on a resolution made by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), it would no longer be permitting Russian and Belarusian players or officials to participate in WDF events or ranked tournaments with immediate effect and until further notice.
Almost two years later and, after the WDF reviewed the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine, they decided to uphold the suspension on Russian and Belarusian players and officials participating in sanctioned events.
In a lengthy statement on their website, they said: "It is also important to understand that, as detailed in the WDF Bye-Laws, a person can play under the flag of their current residence provided that they have resided within that national entity for at least three years and haven’t played for a WDF Member Darts Body of his/her nationality or another WDF Member Darts Body for at least three years."
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It was reported in January 2024 that the WDF would continue to monitor the situation and advise of any changes as they arise.
Dobromyslova featured in the Women's World Matchplay in 2024, where she came up against Fallon Sherrock. She has also competed in the PDC Women's Series, where she lost to Angela Kirkwood.
SPORTbible has reached out to the WDF for comment and a further update.
Topics: Darts
Jack Kenmare