Alexander Zverev, Olympic tennis gold medalist, has denied the abuse allegations of his ex-girlfriend and stated that he supports the introduction of a domestic violence policy for the men's professional tour.
Zverev, a German 24-year-old who finished second last year at U.S. Open which begins Monday, made a statement and briefly addressed the issue at a pre-tournament press conference.
Olga Sharypova was first accused of making the allegations last year. She provided a detailed account in a Slate.com article this week.
"I have always maintained that all the allegations and all that has been stated are false. Zverev stated at the news conference that the court had confirmed this.
"So, there's nothing more to say from mine side because, like I said, it was confirmed by the court."
Zverev received a preliminary injunction from Germany against the publisher and author of the allegations.
His statement stated that "The court followed us and states, and the accusations were defamatory or false."
Sharypova was not charged with any crime.
Sharypova, a former tennis star, claimed last year that Zverev tried to strangle her with an object and hit her head against the wall in a New York hotel just before the U.S. Open 2019. She claimed she was afraid for her life at that time.
Zverev denied the allegations.
Slate later Friday issued a statement in defense of its report.
"Today, we were informed by Alexander Zverev that he has initiated legal proceedings against Slate in Germany after our report about alleged domestic abuse. Katie Rayford, spokesperson for Slate, stated that although Slate doesn't comment on any pending litigations, they stand behind our fair and accurate reporting based upon multiple sources and interviews.
Last weekend, the ATP announced that it would conduct an independent review on its safeguarding policies. It said it expected to make recommendations regarding domestic violence.
Zverev stated Friday that he supports a policy.
He said, "It's going get sorted in such kind of situations."
"I think it's great that the ATP is renewing their rules a bit. They've been there since '80s and not much has changed."
Zverev fell to Dominic Thiem at Flushing Meadows in the 2020 final. He lost in a fifth-set tiebreaker, after losing a two-set lead.
Zverev won a Cincinnati hard-court title this month to follow up his gold medal from the Summer Games.