Egyptian tennis pro joins brother with lifetime fixing ban
LONDON (AP) — A 21-year-old Egyptian professional tennis player once ranked in the top 300 was banned for life — just like his older brother was in 2018 — after an investigation found evidence of match-fixing.
The anti-corruption Tennis Integrity Unit announced Monday that Youssef Hossam cannot compete in or even attend any sanctioned event recognized by one of the sport’s governing bodies.
Hossam already had been provisionally suspended a year ago and is currently ranked 820nd. He reached a career-best No. 291 in 2017.
The lifetime punishment was imposed by a hearing officer.
The TIU said its investigation found Hossam “conspired with other parties to carry out an extensive campaign of betting-related corruption at the lower levels of professional tennis,” with a total of 21 instances of rule-breaking.
The TIU broke down the cases this way: eight involving match-fixing, six instances of facilitating gambling, two of soliciting other players not to try their best, three failures to report approaches by others to engage in corruption and two examples of failing to cooperate with an investigation.
Hossam’s brother, Karim, was banned for life and fined $15,000 by the TIU after being found guilty of 16 corruption charges.
Karim Hossam was ranked as high as 337th in 2013.
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