Shamil Tarpischev should not be considered a modern man. He was born in 1948 and spent 43 years as a citizen of the Soviet Union before that oppressive polity collapsed. He played tennis, coached it and currently is president of the Russian tennis federation.
Being 66 and a Russian male does not excuse his infamous “Williams brothers” statement, but it helps explain it.
The dominance of the Williams sisters, Serena and Venus, has been “scary” to many women in the sport, presumably including Russia’s many elite players, for most of two decades, during which Serena and Venus won 25 grand slam championships.
Several of Tarpischev’s female compatriots would have had more impressive careers (to the glory of his Russian federation) if not for the sisters. Serena beat Dinara Safina in the 2007 Australia Open final and Vera Zvonareva in the 2012 Wimbledon final. Neither Russian woman won a major. Serena twice beat Maria Sharapova in slam finals, and for the 2012 Olympic gold. Venus also kept a Russian woman from a major title, the 2000 Olympic gold, when she beat Elena Dementieva.
Tarpischev’s puzzlement over his one-year ban this week might be genuine. Soviet Man was not a progressive creature, especially in his latter years, and the notion of what is appropriate comment may not have percolated to his side of what was the Iron Curtain. Consider, too, the persistence of racial abuse at football matches in Russia. Tracts of Russian society have not yet arrived in 2014.
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