“I do not support war”, says Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka

The 25-year-old Belarusian had been pressed with questions at the start of Roland-Garros about her stance on the invasion of Ukraine and her ties to Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, an ally of Russia. She then chose, with the agreement of the tournament, not to give a press conference for two rounds, before deciding to present herself again after her victory against Ukrainian Elina Svitolina Tuesday. The Belarusian wanted to put things right: “I don’t support war, I don’t want my country to be involved in any conflict. I have said it many times. You know my position, you know my point of view, you have my answers, I have answered them many times. I do not support war. And I don’t want sports to get involved in politics, because I’m just a tennis player. I’m only 25. If I wanted to be a politician, I wouldn’t be here. I don’t want to be involved in politics. I only want to be a tennis player.»

And the world number 2 went back on her very controversial choice to boycott press conferences during her two previous matches. “I felt like I was disrespected. I had the feeling that the journalist tried to lend me words that were not mine. I didn’t feel comfortable. It’s just my feeling, that’s all. I respect press conferences, I am always transparent in my answers. I was sorry for not coming here. It kept me from sleeping. I had a lot of thoughts going through my mind. I’ve thought about it over and over again, because I respect you all. Thank you for being there, for showing an interest in my journey. I must say that I felt bad for not coming and participating in the press conference.»