College tennis scandal erupts as University of Maryland club suspended for sending racist imagery to rival teams

DAILYMAIL.COM • 2h ago

By RICH JONES, US DEPUTY SPORTS EDITOR 23:10 13 Oct 2026, updated 23:11 13 Oct 2026

The University of Maryland has suspended its tennis club after discovering it sent ‘racist imagery’ to rival teams before hosting a fall tournament on campus.

Officials at UMD’s Recreation and Wellness (RecWell) discovered the imagery on Saturday, the university said in a statement to CBS News Baltimore.

The imagery included in program materials sent to other organizations about the weekend tournament reportedly included a graphic that depicted Ku Klux Klan hoods.

The university has apologized to those who received the materials, including Howard University, a Historically Black University (HBCU) that was among the club teams participating in the event.

UMD says it was ‘horrified’ and has expressed ‘regret and sincere apology for the harm that this has caused.’

‘The Maryland Club Tennis student organization distributed programming material with a graphic containing racist imagery targeting people who are Black or African American,’ the statement said.

‘They emailed this information to other university tennis clubs in the region about this weekend’s fall tournament at College Park.

‘In addition to UMD club tennis apologizing and forfeiting its matches, UMD’s director of [RecWell] issued an apology to the club presidents of all the participating teams.’

The matter was immediately referred to UMD’s police department as well as being further investigated by the university.

The entire club tennis sports team has been suspended and forfeited their matches at the weekend tournament.

Howard University’s club tennis team described the image as ‘KKK pointed hood masks complete with eye holes’ replacing the Crossland coat of arms on the official Maryland state flag.

They said the graphic appeared on the first page of the document emailed to teams and they are calling for further accountability after raising their concerns.

‘The imagery is a recognizable symbol of white supremacy, organized hate and violence,’ the Howard club tennis team stated, adding that: ‘true accountability has yet to come.’

Howard still took part in the competition, saying: ‘The HU Tennis Club team showed an unbreakable spirit on and off the court. In true Bison form, the team stayed the course through the tournament, competed in the final day, and reached the semifinals silver draw.’

Howard University released a statement on Monday evening that read: ‘There is no place for racism, intimidation, or imagery rooted in hatred and racial violence in collegiate athletics, on our campuses, or anywhere in our society.

‘The imagery displayed evoked a painful history of racial terror and exclusion that has no place in an environment dedicated to learning, personal development, and mutual respect.

‘Howard University will remain engaged with the University of Maryland as its investigation proceeds. As institutions of higher learning, we share a responsibility not only to confront acts of racism but also to foster communities where respect for the humanity of others is an expectation, not merely an aspiration.’

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