Raymond Moore has stepped down as CEO and tournament director of the BNP Paribas Open following comments he made about women’s tennis in a move welcomed by the women’s tour.
Moore provoked outrage at the weekend when he said top-level women’s players rode “on the coattails of the men” and were “very, very lucky” to have equal prize money.
The tennis world reacted strongly as world number one Serena Williams and all-time great Martina Navratilova rebuffed the statements and the ATP men’s tour formally denounced them.
Tournament owner Larry Ellison revealed the departure with a statement that both announced Moore’s resignation and championed the sport’s efforts toward equality.
“Nearly half a century ago, Billie Jean King began her historic campaign for the equal treatment of women in tennis,” Ellison said.