"I wouldn't do that": Belarus' No.2 criticises Ukrainian women she is "tired of talking about"

Belarusian second seed Victoria Azarenka has admitted that she is tired of discussing the refusal of Ukrainian athletes to shake hands with representatives of aggressor countries. The former world's best tennis player does not share the position of our compatriots, who thus remind us that the war is still ongoing.

Azarenka said this at a press conference before the start of the prestigious $2.8 million tournament in Montreal, the Ukrainian Tennis website writes. The 34-year-old Belarusian athlete also supported the decision of the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) to announce to the audience before matches between Ukrainians and representatives of Russia and Belarus that there will be no traditional handshakes after the matches.

"I'm so tired of talking about it! So I hope that maybe a statement will finally be made that it's enough to talk about it. I think this is a very clear message - it is a personal choice of Ukrainian athletes. This is not a standard practice. I would not do it, but I am not in a position to judge. I respect someone's decision, but it's not... Yeah, I don't think it's a standard practice in sport. And, as I have said many times, I will respect and accept the choice of another player," Azarenka said.

Recently, in Washington, the Belarusian lost to Ukraine's number one Elina Svitolina and made an unusual gesture to our tennis player. At the same time, the rivals also met at Wimbledon 2023, and after the match, Azarenka came to a press conference wearing black glasses, hiding her eyes from journalists after being booed by the fans.

As reported by OBOZREVATEL, one of the Russian tennis players was detained at the Prague airport and denied entry to the country for an international tournament.

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