French Open star accused of sexist comment to female umpire hit with hefty punishment

French Open star Adolfo Daniel Vallejo has received a sanction after making sexist comments about a female umpire following his second-round defeat.

Twenty-two-year-old Paraguayan Vallejo lost 6-3, 7-5, 3-6, 2-6, 7-6 (10-8) to Frenchman Moise Kouame in his second-round match before accusing Brazilian umpire Ana Carvalho of lacking the authority to deal with the hostile home crowd, who were cheering on their compatriot.

Throughout the contest, Vallejo appeared less than pleased with the amount of time his 17-year-old opponent was taking between points despite soaring temperatures in Paris.

The South American then criticised the umpire for being unable to control what he described as an "annoying" and "disrespectful" crowd.

Speaking to Clay, Vallejo fumed: "This sort of match needs to be umpired by a man; it's very difficult for a woman to do it.

"It has to be refereed by a man because it's a very demanding crowd and you need a lot of strength to go against the crowd.

"The crowd was very out of line, but I understand they're supporting their compatriot. It's quite an intense crowd and that's why I was prepared; I already knew it would be like that and, to be honest, it didn't harm me but rather strengthened him."

His comments caused widespread outrage, with fans and members of the tennis community calling for an appropriate sanction.

Vallejo's comments 'unacceptable'

On Friday (May 29), the French Tennis Federation and Roland-Garros organisers released a statement in which they branded the star's comments as "unacceptable".

"The competence of an umpire is not determined by their gender, but by their professionalism and ability to officiate at the highest level," the statement read. "The outcome of a sporting event, whether positive or negative, can never justify or excuse such remarks. The tournament organisers will impose a significant sanction on Adolfo Vallejo in the form of a fine.

"The Roland-Garros tournament strongly condemns all sexist remarks, regardless of who makes them, and offers its support to the match umpire and, more broadly, to all of the tournament's umpiring officials."

This prompted Vallejo to address the matter on social media, with the 22-year-old posting: "I never spoke about women in general; I spoke about the referee specifically, who didn't handle the crowd at any point during the match.

"That said, I also didn't say that I lost because of her. I congratulated my opponent and it's normal for the crowd to cheer for the home player."

On Monday (June 1), the South American received a $65,000 (£48,300) fine — one of the biggest in Grand Slam history — equal to nearly 50 per cent of his prize money, with players eliminated in the second round earning $151,000 (£112,000).

"It is roughly half of his prize money," tournament director Amélie Mauresmo said.

"Clearly, this is something that is not acceptable for us as a tournament. Words like this should not be used in this arena."

Vallejo also issued a public apology on social media.

"I have respect for the umpires and for the job they do. After a five-hour battle, I was very heated and felt a lot of emotions. I apologise," he wrote.