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Two female tennis players were sent threatening messages, each receiving a photo of a gun and ordered to forfeit matches.
Panna Udvardy and Lucrezia Stefanini described in detail the disturbing messages in which they and their families were threatened.
“Last night around midnight I received several very disturbing messages on WhatsApp from an unknown number on my personal phone. The person told me that if I didn’t lose my match today, they would hurt members of my family,” Udvardy wrote on Instagram, along with screenshots of the messages, regarding her match against Anhelina Kalinina at the Megasaray Hotels Open, which she lost in straight sets.
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Lucrezia Stefanini and Panna Udvardy both received threatening messages ordering them to forfeit recent tennis matches. (Flaviu Buboi, Robert Prangevia Getty Images)
“They said they knew where my family lives, what cars they drive and that they had their phone numbers. They even sent pictures of my family members and a picture of a gun.”
The message Udvardy received said that the culprit(s) “know everything about your family and you” and were “ready for war if necessary, and we will not hesitate to send them to your mother’s house to kidnap her until she returns the money we would lose because of your disobedience.”
Udvardy said she contacted the Women’s Tennis Association and three additional police officers were sent to her match, “for which I am extremely grateful.” Police also went to her parents’ and grandmother’s homes, she added.
Panna Udvardy of Hungary in action against Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the women’s singles first round match on Day 2 of the French Open at Roland Garros on May 27, 2024 in Paris, France. (Robert Prange/Getty Images)
The message Stefanini received was eerily similar.
“I received a WhatsApp message threatening me about winning yesterday’s match. They threatened me and my family and named my parents, the place where I was born and they sent me a picture of a gun,” Stefanini said in her own Instagram post.
Stefanini also told the WTA about the situation and she was also given increased security.
“I’m making this video explaining what happened because I don’t think it’s right to put myself under this pressure and turmoil before a game,” Stefanini said.
Lucrezia Stefanini of Italy in action during day one of the Oberösterreich Ladies Linz 2024 on January 28, 2024 in Linz, Austria. (Alexander Scheuber/Getty Images for MatchMaker)
Udvardy said the messages are “not normal.”
“Even as athletes or public figures, it is not acceptable to receive threats against our families, especially on our private phone numbers and accompanied by disturbing images. We should not normalize abuse like this in sport.”
Stefanini lost her Indian Wells qualifier in three sets.
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