Elina Svitolina is in a fog at Wimbledon because of the missile attacks on Ukraine
Ukrainian tennis player Elina Svitolina says she was in a fog at Wimbledon because of a deadly Russian missile strike on her home country
LONDON (AP) — Elina Svitolina spoke haltingly, pausing occasionally to sigh, as she discussed the deadly Russian missile attack on her home country of Ukraine, an event that weighed on her and mattered far more than the straight-set victory Monday that meant a return to the Wimbledon quarterfinals.
Svitolina has relatives back home — a grandmother, an uncle, others — and while victories like the 6-2, 6-1 scoreline against Wang Xinyu mean something to them, and can serve as “a small light that brought a happy moment for Ukrainian people,” in her words, it is not easy to think too much about tennis.
Dozens of Russian missiles hit five cities in Ukraine, striking apartment buildings and a children’s hospital in the capital of Kyiv, killing at least 31 people and wounding more than 150, officials said.
“It was really difficult for me to really be here, in a way, and do anything. I just wanted to be in my room, just be there with my emotions, with everything. When you have these sad days, where you don’t want to do anything, it was this kind of day for me,” said Svitolina, who received permission from the All England Club to wear a black mourning ribbon pinned to her white shirt during the match.
