Ukrainian 16-year-old Yelyzaveta Kotliar said she was “deeply sorry” for the criticism she received after shaking hands with her Russian opponent at the Australian Open.
Agence France-Presse reported that Kotelia’s behavior in the first Grand Slam of the year was closely watched. After she was defeated in the first round of the junior women’s singles match, she shook hands with Russian player Vlada Mincheva. .
There is an unwritten rule among fellow Ukrainians not to shake hands with their Russian and Belarusian opponents after games while war is raging in their homeland.
MAKE UKRAINE HUMANE AGAIN: 16-year-old Ukrainian tennis player Yelyzaveta Kotliar reportedly faces charges in Ukraine after shaking hands with a Russian player following the Ukrainian girls’ loss. The @Ukraine Ministry of Sports is said to have opened a case against her for… pic.twitter.com/URPjw3qdy2
— Lumumba Amin 🇺🇬 (@LumumbaAmin) January 22, 2024
The Ukraine Tennis Federation issued a statement describing the incident as an “unpleasant incident” and reiterated its position that “Ukrainian tennis players do not shake hands with representatives of aggressor countries”.
“Our important players have been informed of the incident and support this position,” the Ukrainian Tennis Federation said in a statement, adding that Kotelia’s move was “a mistake.”
Kotliar’s father, Konstantin Kotliar, said his daughter was not thinking well under pressure.
He issued a statement on behalf of his daughter, saying: “She is only 16 years old and has no actual experience participating in major events such as the Grand Slam. The Grand Slam is the highest palace of professional tennis and youth tennis.”
“She went through the post-match ceremony and shook hands with her opponent without thinking that across the net was a representative of a country attacking our homeland,” the statement said. “This was an absolute mistake and she is deeply sorry for it and promises to never let it happen again.” Things happen.”
Ukrainian female player Dayana Yastremska defeated unseeded Czech player Linda Noskova today and broke into theAustralian OpenIn the women’s singles semi-finals, when asked about related issues, she defended Cortelia.
“You know, Ukrainians, we have our position. We refuse to shake hands. But I think she is young and inexperienced. This situation can happen to everyone,” Yastelenska, 23, said.
Lesia Tsurenko, the Ukrainian player ranked 28th at the Australian Open, said earlier that refusing to shake hands had become part of Ukrainian players’ protest against Russian aggression.
“This reminds us once again that there is a war in our homeland. If you could put yourself in my shoes or in the shoes of any other Ukrainian, you wouldn’t have this problem,” Zhulianko said. “It’s the right thing to do and I’m doing it for Ukraine,” she said.
2024-01-24 07:38:39
#Australian #OpenThe #16yearold #Ukrainian #female #player #apologized #shaking #hands #Russian #opponent #game
