Tennis star Serena Williams has accused the Russian tennis chief of making 'extremely sexist, racist and bullying' comments after he described her and her sister Venus as 'scary' to look at.
Shamil Tarpischev, of the Russian Tennis Federation, made the remarks during an appearance on a local TV talk show this month alongside former Olympic singles champion Elena Dementieva.
When Dementieva was asked what it was like playing against the Williams sisters, Tarpischev cut in and called them the 'Williams brothers', before adding: 'It's scary when you really look at them.'
The official was later handed a one-year suspension imposed by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) for the comments. He was also ordered to pay a $25,000 fine.
Speaking in Singapore today, ahead of her WTA Finals defense, Williams said: 'I think the WTA did a great job of taking (the) initiative and taking immediate action to his comments.
'I thought they were very insensitive and extremely sexist as well as racist at the same time. I thought they were in a way bullying. '
When asked whether he regretted his comments, Tarpischev initially told AP that the program on which he spoke was 'a humorous show.' He added that he 'didn't understand' his one-year ban.
But in a statement later released by the Russian Tennis Federation, the chief denied any 'malicious intent' and said his quotes had been taken out of context.
Russian tennis player Maria Sharapova, 27, has also spoken out against her compatriot's comments.
'I think they were very disrespectful and uncalled for and I'm glad that many people have stood up, including the WTA,' said Miss Sharapova, who is also in Singapore for the BNP Paribas WTA Finals.
'It was very inappropriate, especially in his position and all the responsibilities that he has not just in sport, but being part of the Olympic committee.'
Tarpischev has been chairman of the Kremlin Cup, Russia's only WTA event, for its entire 18 years as a women's tour event. He is also a member of the International Olympic Committee.
The WTA said it would seek his removal as chairman of the Kremlin Cup, which ends today.
During the 1990s, Tarpischev was the personal tennis coach to Russian President Boris Yeltsin and served as his adviser on sports matters.
Williams, currently the world number one, is going into the WTA Finals on the back of another stellar year, winning six titles including the US Open.
But she pulled out of the China Open earlier this month with a knee injury, triggering some concerns she might not make the Singapore.
The draw for the year-end competition - starting Monday at the 10,000-capacity Singapore Indoor Stadium - puts Williams in the Red Group with Simona Halep, 23, and 20-year-old Eugenie Bouchard as well as the more experienced Ana Ivanovic, the only one of her three opponents ever to beat her.
Williams said doctors only allowed her to start hitting the ball in practice again last week.
'They thought it was very bad for me to hit sooner than that,' she said. 'After that, I just, like I said, started training. I was surprised at how well I was able to kind of jump back into it.'
Yesterday, Williams was spotted sporting a cleavage-baring canary frock, high heels and crimped hair as she attended a glamorous WTA Finals gathering at the Marina Bay Sands hotel in Singapore.
The White Group sees second-seeded Sharapova, the French Open champion, joined by Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova, Caroline Wozniacki and Agnieszka Radwanska.
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