TIU Bans French Line Umpire for Betting on Tennis Matches

The Tennis Integrity Unit (TIU) has banned French tennis line umpire David Rocher from professional tennis for 18 months for breaching the betting rules laid out in the Tennis Anti-Corruption Programme.

Mr Rocher was charged with placing eleven bets on tennis between January and October 2019 and a further charge of not co-operating with the TIU investigation. He admitted the first charge and contested the second.

The case was ruled on by Anti-Corruption Hearing Officer Ian Mill QC, who found that Mr Rocher did not fully co-operate with the investigation and accordingly would be sanctioned for six months for the betting offences and 18 months (with four suspended) for failure to fully co-operate. The bans will run concurrently, meaning from the date of the ruling (6 December 2020) until 6 February 2022, Mr Rocher is prohibited from officiating in or attending any tennis event authorised or sanctioned by the governing bodies of tennis. In addition, he was fined $5000, with $4000 suspended.

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The breaches of the Tennis Anti-corruption Programme (TACP) that Mr Rocher has been found guilty of are:

D.1.a: “No Covered Person shall, directly or indirectly, wager on the outcome or any other aspect of any Event or any other tennis competition”

F.2.b: “All Covered Persons must cooperate fully with investigations conducted by the TIU including giving evidence at hearings, if requested. Even in the case where a Covered Person is represented by a legal counsel, the Covered Person is still personally responsible for ensuring that they cooperate fully with the investigation. The Covered Person shall be deemed not to have cooperated if the Covered Person’s legal counsel interferes with a TIU investigation.”