Here’s why Ukrainian Tennis player Elina Svitolina is angry these days

By Online Desk

Elina Svitolina sees an entrenched injustice in international sports ever since Russia’s invasion of her country.

The only Ukrainian ever to win an Olympic medal in tennis, Svitolina is angry that Ukrainian athletes are saddled with extremely challenging conditions, often fighting on the battlefield itself, while the rest of the world’s athletes can carry on training as usual, Kyiv Post reports.

“Russian athletes have had the opportunity to continue playing as if nothing ever happened. And our athletes are dying for our country,” Svitolina told the Kyiv Post.

War, pregnancy and some lingering back pain as well have kept the Ukrainian star on the sidelines for more than a year. However, immediately following Russia’s invasion last year, Svitolina, then 27 years old, announced her refusal to play against any woman representing either Russia or Belarus. She laments that the war has had a crippling effect on the development of Ukrainian tennis.

“I think the situation in Ukrainian sports as a whole is very sad. All sports have been set back ten years,” she said. “The restoration [of tennis] will be gradual,” she said in an interview to the Kyiv Post. 

From her training grounds in Monaco, Kyiv Post interview said, Svitolina emphasized that there many Ukrainian athletes like her, who currently reside abroad and are using their influence to attract foreign assistance, both in rebuilding the country’s infrastructure and supporting the Ukrainian military. She described what she is doing personally for those efforts as an ambassador for the United24 platform, and how she assists young Ukrainian athletes through the Elina Svitolina Foundation. 

<br /> Elina Svitolina sees an entrenched injustice in international sports ever since Russia’s invasion of her country.</p> <!-- WP QUADS Content Ad Plugin v. 2.0.81 --> <div class="quads-location quads-ad241053 " id="quads-ad241053" style="float:none;margin:0px 3px 3px 3px;padding:0px 0px 0px 0px;" data-lazydelay="0"> <!-- WP QUADS - Quick AdSense Reloaded v.2.0.81 Content AdSense async --> <ins class="adsbygoogle" style="display:block;" data-ad-format="auto" data-ad-client="ca-pub-7550963679842137" data-ad-slot="3250057321"></ins> <script> (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});</script> <!-- end WP QUADS --> </div> <p>The only Ukrainian ever to win an Olympic medal in tennis, Svitolina is angry that Ukrainian athletes are saddled with extremely challenging conditions, often fighting on the battlefield itself, while the rest of the world’s athletes can carry on training as usual, Kyiv Post reports.</p> <p>“Russian athletes have had the opportunity to continue playing as if nothing ever happened. And our athletes are dying for our country,” Svitolina told the Kyiv Post.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });</p> <!-- WP QUADS Content Ad Plugin v. 2.0.81 --> <div class="quads-location quads-ad241053 " id="quads-ad241053" style="float:none;margin:0px 3px 3px 3px;padding:0px 0px 0px 0px;" data-lazydelay="0"> <!-- WP QUADS - Quick AdSense Reloaded v.2.0.81 Content AdSense async --> <ins class="adsbygoogle" style="display:block;" data-ad-format="auto" data-ad-client="ca-pub-7550963679842137" data-ad-slot="3250057321"></ins> <script> (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});</script> <!-- end WP QUADS --> </div> <p>War, pregnancy and some lingering back pain as well have kept the Ukrainian star on the sidelines for more than a year. However, immediately following Russia’s invasion last year, Svitolina, then 27 years old, announced her refusal to play against any woman representing either Russia or Belarus. She laments that the war has had a crippling effect on the development of Ukrainian tennis.</p> <p>“I think the situation in Ukrainian sports as a whole is very sad. All sports have been set back ten years,” she said. “The restoration [of tennis] will be gradual,” she said in an interview to the Kyiv Post. </p> <!-- WP QUADS Content Ad Plugin v. 2.0.81 --> <div class="quads-location quads-ad241053 " id="quads-ad241053" style="float:none;margin:0px 3px 3px 3px;padding:0px 0px 0px 0px;" data-lazydelay="0"> <!-- WP QUADS - Quick AdSense Reloaded v.2.0.81 Content AdSense async --> <ins class="adsbygoogle" style="display:block;" data-ad-format="auto" data-ad-client="ca-pub-7550963679842137" data-ad-slot="3250057321"></ins> <script> (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});</script> <!-- end WP QUADS --> </div> <p>From her training grounds in Monaco, Kyiv Post interview said, Svitolina emphasized that there many Ukrainian athletes like her, who currently reside abroad and are using their influence to attract foreign assistance, both in rebuilding the country’s infrastructure and supporting the Ukrainian military. She described what she is doing personally for those efforts as an ambassador for the United24 platform, and how she assists young Ukrainian athletes through the Elina Svitolina Foundation. <br />