Tennis umpire banned for life for manipulating scores and gambling

LONDON (AP) — A tennis umpire from Bulgaria was banned for life on Friday for breaking rules related to betting 21 times from 2019-23.

Pavel Atanasov admitted charges including manipulating match scores data for betting purposes, gambling on matches and “failure to report corrupt approaches,” the International Tennis Integrity Agency said.

Atanasov said during the investigation he was paid less than $100 each day for umpiring at low-level International Tennis Federation events. He also was fined $10,000.

The ITIA said the ban prevents the former umpire from attending tennis events.

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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis