Ukranian Marta Kostyuk refuses to shake hands with Belarusian Victoria Azarenka
\nISLAMABAD
\nKostyuk had lost in straight sets to Azarenka and they just tapped their racquets but the reaction was pre-planned ahead of the game.
\nMarta Kostyuk, of Ukraine, prepares to serve to Victoria Azarenka, of Belarus, during the second round of the U.S. Open tennis championships, Thursday, Sept. 1, 2022, in New York. (AP Photo\/Julia Nikhinson)
\nThe acrimony over Russia\u2019s invasion of Ukraine cast its shadow on the US Open on Thursday night when Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine refused to shake hands with Victoria Azarenka from Belarus. Kostyuk had lost in straight sets and they just tapped their racquets but the reaction was pre-planned ahead of the game. She had even texted Azarenka that she wasn\u2019t going to shake hands.
\nKostyuk has been outspoken in her belief that Russian and Belaurusian players should be banned from the sport. In April, Kostyuk led a team of players from Ukraine in demanding the tennis administrators to ask players from Russia and Ukraine if they supported the war and denounce it if they did not. If there was no denouncement, then Kostyuk and co. believed the players should be banned from international events.
\n\u201cThere comes a time when silence is betrayal, and that time is now,\u201d the statement from the players said then.
\nOn Thursday night, Kostyuk explained her refusal to shake hands with Azarenka, who has made many appearances with Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko in the past. She said she had texted Azarenka ahead of the game though the two didn\u2019t speak about it.
\n\u201cIt was my choice, I feel like I don\u2019t know any single person who condemned the war publicly, and the actions of their government, so I don\u2019t feel like I can support this. Don\u2019t get me wrong, she\u2019s a great competitor. But, it has nothing to do with her being a human being.\u201d
\nVictoria Azarenka, of Belarus, reacts after defeating Marta Kostyuk, of Ukraine, during the second round of the U.S. Open tennis championships, Thursday, Sept. 1, 2022, in New York. (AP Photo\/Julia Nikhinson)
\nLast week, Kostyuk had successfully urged the United States Tennis Association to stop Azarenka from participating in an exhibition to benefit relief efforts in Ukraine.
\n\u201cImagine there is World War II and there is a fundraiser for Jewish people and a German player wants to play,\u201d Kostyuk said.
\nAzarenka couldn\u2019t understand the decision. \u201cIt\u2019s a no-brainer for me, as why wouldn\u2019t I participate in humanitarian aid for people who are really struggling right now,\u201d she said. \u201cI thought that this was a gesture that really shows commitment. I\u2019m not sure why it wasn\u2019t taken that way.\u201d \u201cI\u2019ve been told it\u2019s not a good time,\u201d she said. \u201cI\u2019ve had a very clear message from the beginning, that I\u2019m here to try to help, which I have done a lot. Maybe not something that people see. And that\u2019s not what I do it for. I do it for people who are in need, juniors who need clothes, other people who need money or other people who need transportation or whatever. That\u2019s what is important to me, to help people who are in need.\u201d
\nAzarenka said if Kostyuk wanted to speak with her, she was \u201copen any time to listen, to try to understand, to sympathize,\u201d adding, \u201cI believe that empathy in the moment like this is really important.\u201d
\nThe acrimony over Russia\u2019s invasion of Ukraine cast its shadow on the US Open on Thursday night when Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine refused to shake hands with Victoria Azarenka from Belarus. Kostyuk had lost in straight sets and they just tapped their racquets but the reaction was pre-planned ahead of the game. She had even texted Azarenka that she wasn\u2019t going to shake hands.
\nKostyuk has been outspoken in her belief that Russian and Belaurusian players should be banned from the sport. In April, Kostyuk led a team of players from Ukraine in demanding the tennis administrators to ask players from Russia and Ukraine if they supported the war and denounce it if they did not. If there was no denouncement, then Kostyuk and co. believed the players should be banned from international events.
\n\u201cThere comes a time when silence is betrayal, and that time is now,\u201d the statement from the players said then.
\nOn Thursday night, Kostyuk explained her refusal to shake hands with Azarenka, who has made many appearances with Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko in the past. She said she had texted Azarenka ahead of the game though the two didn\u2019t speak about it.
\n\u201cIt was my choice, I feel like I don\u2019t know any single person who condemned the war publicly, and the actions of their government, so I don\u2019t feel like I can support this. Don\u2019t get me wrong, she\u2019s a great competitor. But, it has nothing to do with her being a human being.\u201d
\nVictoria Azarenka, of Belarus, reacts after defeating Marta Kostyuk, of Ukraine, during the second round of the U.S. Open tennis championships, Thursday, Sept. 1, 2022, in New York. (AP Photo\/Julia Nikhinson)
\nLast week, Kostyuk had successfully urged the United States Tennis Association to stop Azarenka from participating in an exhibition to benefit relief efforts in Ukraine.
\n\u201cImagine there is World War II and there is a fundraiser for Jewish people and a German player wants to play,\u201d Kostyuk said.
\nAzarenka couldn\u2019t understand the decision. \u201cIt\u2019s a no-brainer for me, as why wouldn\u2019t I participate in humanitarian aid for people who are really struggling right now,\u201d she said. \u201cI thought that this was a gesture that really shows commitment. I\u2019m not sure why it wasn\u2019t taken that way.\u201d
\n\u201cI\u2019ve been told it\u2019s not a good time,\u201d she said. \u201cI\u2019ve had a very clear message from the beginning, that I\u2019m here to try to help, which I have done a lot. Maybe not something that people see. And that\u2019s not what I do it for. I do it for people who are in need, juniors who need clothes, other people who need money or other people who need transportation or whatever. That\u2019s what is important to me, to help people who are in need.\u201d
\nAzarenka said if Kostyuk wanted to speak with her, she was \u201copen any time to listen, to try to understand, to sympathize,\u201d adding, \u201cI believe that empathy in the moment like this is really important.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Ukranian Marta Kostyuk refuses to shake hands with Belarusian Victoria Azarenka ISLAMABAD Kostyuk had lost in straight sets to Azarenka and they just tapped their racquets but the reaction was pre-planned ahead of the game. Marta Kostyuk, of Ukraine, prepares to serve to Victoria Azarenka, of Belarus, during the second round of the U.S. Open […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":281217,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-281196","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sports"},"yoast_head":"\n