Svitolina Denounces Online Abuse After Canadian Defeat
Ukrainian tennis player Elina Svitolina has publicly denounced the abuse and hate messages she received online after her defeat in a match in Canada. The messages, coming from frustrated gamblers, included death wishes and celebrations for the war in her country. After losing to Naomi Osaka in the quarterfinals of the Canadian Open, Svitolina shared screenshots of the messages on Instagram.Description of Svitolina’s post
The abuse was not only directed at Svitolina, but also included racial slurs aimed at her husband, French tennis player Gael Monfils, who is Black. A particularly hurtful message wished that Russia would “kill all Ukrainians” in the context of the ongoing war.Earlier this year, British tennis player Katie Boulter also revealed that she had received death threats during the French Open, directed at her and her family. These incidents have led the WTA and ITF to ask betting companies to take action to curb the online abuse that players face on social media. Boulter stated that online abuse has become common and that many of the messages come from people who bet on tennis matches. Your comments coincide with the publication of a report on online abuse, which revealed that 458 tennis players were targeted by more than 8,000 abusive comments and posts on social media in 2024. The report noted that 40% of the abuse came from “angry gamblers”.“To all the gamblers: I am a mother before an athlete. The way they speak to women, to mothers, is SHAMEFUL. If their mothers saw their messages, they would be disgusted.”
Elina Svitolina
