At the French Open, Adolfo Daniel Vallejo has been hit with a fine of $65,000 after saying the match he competed in during the second round shouldn’t have had a female umpire, according to an announcement Monday from organizers.
Recently, Vallejo suffered defeat against France‘s Moise Kouame following a five-set struggle that went for almost five hours. Later, Vallejo spoke to tennis outlet Clay and said that “this sort of match needs to be umpired by a man,” per ESPN.
After the 6-3, 7-5, 3-6, 2-6, 7-6 (8) defeat, Vallejo also said, “It’s very difficult for a woman to do it.” (RELATED: Russell Wilson Set To Join CBS Sports: REPORT)
Competitors who advance to the French Open‘s second round receive a check of 130,000 euros ($151,000). Speaking with the media at the tournament, Roland Garros director Amelie Mauresmo said that Vallejo was given a fine of 65,000 euros, which represents “roughly half of his prize money.” Later, it was clarified by organizers that Vallejo’s fine came in dollars rather than euros.
“This is clearly unacceptable,” said Mauresmo, per ESPN. “Once again, such remarks have no place here.”
Adolfo Daniel Vallejo was fined $65,000 at the French Open after he said his second-round match should not have been umpired by a woman, organizers announced on Monday.https://t.co/sq7vTIAJ8W
— ESPN (@espn) June 1, 2026
From Paraguay, Vallejo stated that the Brazilian female umpire, Ana Carvalho, wasn’t able to keep control of fans watching.
“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,” said Vallejo, per ESPN. “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.”
Vallejo went on to say that Kouame “took up a lot of time on many occasions, lying on the floor or stalling.”
“And it’s not normal for the crowd to be shouting for a full minute without any play. In a match where the physical aspect matters so much, if you give a player a lot of time he’s obviously going to take advantage of it. The truth is it’s also difficult for a referee to manage this situation.”