Blackmailer threatens tennis player with violence against family before match

The Hungarian tennis player Panna Udvardy has been blackmailed in a perfidious manner by an unknown person. "The person threatened to harm my family if I didn't lose my match today," the 27-year-old wrote on Instagram. The person claimed to know "where my family lives, what cars they drive and that they had their phone numbers. She even sent photos of my family members and a picture of a gun".

Udvardy received the messages on her personal cell phone before her quarterfinal match at the WTA Challenger tournament in Antalya, Turkey, against Ukraine's Anhelina Kalinina, which she ultimately lost 6-7, 5-7. "It was really scary to receive something like that," wrote Udvardy.

Police protection and charges filed

Following the threats, the 95th-ranked player in the world received police protection in Turkey. "The consulate reacted very quickly and sent three police officers to my match, for which I am very grateful," emphasized Udvardy: "The police also went to my parents' and grandmother's home, and after the match I filed an official complaint with the police here in Turkey."

Apparently, this is not an isolated case. "I was told that similar threats had been made to other players recently and that it was suspected that personal data had been tapped from the WTA database," wrote Udvardy. This is currently being investigated. She called on the WTA to thoroughly investigate the incidents and protect the players.

"No player should have to experience something like this"

"I want to make one thing very clear: this is not normal," Udvardy emphasized: "It is also unacceptable for athletes and public figures to receive threats against our families, especially not via our private telephone numbers and together with disturbing images." Such attacks should not be normalized. "No player should have to experience something like this," she emphasized.