"WTA, don't let the tennis world get used to the war in Ukraine"

On September 12, Ukrainian tennis player Dayana Yastremska reported that a Russian missile had destroyed an apartment in Odesa that belonged to her family.

Yastremska gave an interview to CNN World Sport and described what happened:

“What happened to me in Odesa is happening in Ukraine every day. Families in different cities go to sleep in their own homes: some are making plans for tomorrow, while others won’t wake up the next day. I was very lucky not to have been there, and I’m happy that my family is still alive, because I can’t even imagine what would have happened if any of us had been there. I think we wouldn’t be here anymore either, just as our apartment is no longer there.

– We’ve been living through this war for four and a half years now. We’ve heard and seen so many stories and Russian attacks all over Ukraine. But how does everything change when your own house and apartment become the target?

– Over these four and a half years, every day you don’t know where the next strike will land. There’s always the possibility that it could be you. I know there are many other stories behind mine, and some of them are far more terrifying. How many destroyed Ukrainian homes will you never see? How many mothers and fathers will never give an interview? How many young people who were killed will forever remain just a number in a news report to the rest of the world? I don’t need people to feel sorry for me. I want something else—for the world not to get used to this war. Not to get used to the photos of destroyed homes, not to get used to the numbers of the dead and wounded, because behind every number is a person.

– Right at the start of the war, you left Odesa with your sister Ivanna, who was 15 at the time. You went on an incredible journey, spending the night in parking lots, and then made it to France, where you played in a tournament. When you look back now on those moments from four and a half years ago, how do you view them today? And how have the last four and a half years changed your outlook on life and the world?

– You know, I’m 26 now, and when the full-scale war began, I was 21. Practically my entire adult life has unfolded against the backdrop of this war. My life is unusual. I’m a professional tennis player. I travel, play in major tournaments, and see different countries. But when I take off my tennis clothes, I’m just an ordinary girl. I’m a daughter, a sister, and a friend, just like millions of other young women. For some reason, the world teaches you lessons very quickly. Things that seem completely ordinary today—your home, the chance to gather with your whole family around the table, a phone call from your parents or loved ones—can suddenly become the most precious things you’ve ever had. I think one of the hardest things in my life, especially in professional sports, is that you have to learn to shut off your emotions. You have to put on a show, pretend that nothing has happened, that everything is fine, because we’re all the same on the court. But every time you step onto the court at an international tournament and see the Ukrainian flag next to your name, you realize that today it means so much more to you than ever before.

– You wrote in your social media post when you were talking about the attack on a residential building, and you called on the WTA and World Tennis to take a look at these images. What do you want them to see?

– First and foremost, I don’t want them to forget what’s happening. I want them to see that this is reality. Lately, I haven’t really felt much attention or, I would say, support from them. I believe that a great many places in Ukraine have been destroyed. It’s very difficult for the younger generation to train and play sports, and I think they could do much more by taking advantage of opportunities that would help.

– So, when you say you think they could be more proactive and you’d like to see more help from the WTA, what exactly would you like to see?

– I want to talk about who we can help. And my main message to the WTA is very simple: please don’t let the tennis world get used to the war in Ukraine just because it’s been going on for four and a half years. I don’t want conversations about Ukraine to once again boil down to questions about who isn’t allowed to compete, who I should or shouldn’t play against, or whose hand I should or shouldn’t shake. Do you know how many times we’ve talked about this over the past four and a half years? It’s just crazy how many times—and yet not much has actually changed.