Tennis Federation of Ukraine demanded to remove Russians and Belarusians from tournaments
Ukrainian Tennis Federation on Instagram (social network banned in Russia; owned by Meta Corporation, recognized as an extremist organization and banned in Russia) made a demand to remove Russians and Belarusians from international tournaments.
The organization drew attention to the congratulations of the President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko to the local tennis player Arina Sobolenko, who won the Australian Open. According to the Ukrainian side, such actions by Lukashenka are a manifestation of self-PR on sports results. “It is necessary to immediately isolate Russian and Belarusian athletes within the borders of their states!” they said.
Sobolenko became the winner of the Australian Open-2023. In the decisive match, she defeated the representative of Kazakhstan Elena Rybakina with a score of 4:6, 6:3, 6:4. After that, Lukashenka posted a video in which he makes a toast in honor of the tennis player and drinks a glass of vodka.
Russian and Belarusian tennis players play at the tournaments of the Association of Tennis Professionals and the Women’s Tennis Association in a neutral status. Athletes in all tournaments are deprived of the flag and anthem. At the same time, Russians are forbidden to play in tournaments under the auspices of the International Tennis Federation.
Source: Lenta
Kingston is an accomplished author and journalist, known for his in-depth and engaging writing on sports. He currently works as a writer at 247 News Agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the sports industry.
