Oleksandra Oliynykova showed the destruction of some tennis courts in Ukraine (Image: Tennis Actu TV)
Oleksandra Oliynykova used her first-round press conference at the French Open to make a powerful statement about Russian players on tour. The world No. 65 earned her first Grand Slam main-draw victory over Russian qualifier Elena Pridankina on Tuesday, and then gave an impassioned speech, claiming players were “participating in propaganda”.
Oliynykova first garnered attention at this year’s Australian Open, when she made her Grand Slam debut against 2025 champion Madison Keys. The Ukrainian raised eyebrows with her unusual on-court fashion choices. Oliynykova has tattoos across her arms, but she also put temporary tattoo stickers on her face.
The 25-year-old has since done this at other tournaments, including the Transylvania Open and the French Open, sometimes matching the face stickers to her kit. She also raised her profile in Melbourne when she used her post-match media duties to speak out about the invasion of Ukraine.
Oliynykova’s family fled Ukraine for Croatia in 2011, when she was just 10 years old. They have since returned to Kyiv, and her father, Denis, serves in the Ukrainian army. The world No. 65 has continued to speak about the war at every opportunity – including in Paris, where her dad was able to be courtside for her first Grand Slam victory.
“It’s very important for me, my father saw my first Grand Slam win in real life. When I finished the match, I took the Ukrainian flag and I came to my father, and was like, you saw it, you saw first win on a Slam. Yeah, it’s very special and my first match, I’m going to win it only once, and I’m very happy,” Oliynykova said after the match.
Given that she faced a Russian opponent, the Ukrainian quickly turned her attention to the war in her homeland, and got her phone out to share a photo showing the destruction of tennis courts in Ukraine.
Oleksandra Oliynykova won her first Grand Slam main draw match (Image: Getty)
“For me, when I play, I’m professional, and I’m doing my work. One day I can win, the other day I can lose. I mean, this is part of my job. The thing is, it doesn’t affect me on the court but we need to understand that this match and making a show from this, it’s not fair. I can show you what the Russians did during the attack with the tennis courts,” she explained.
“You can see what’s happening to the tennis courts in Ukraine. Many of our athletes went to the war to defend Ukraine, they died. Someone was killed as a civilian in their own home.”
Oliynykova said the “horrible things” were “happening for a reason” and continued: “We need to speak about this, and this silence on tour, for me, it’s very triggering. So there is a part, when I am on court, with a racket, it’s different. But this part, out of court, this is something we need to speak about more, and the sports organisations need to do something about this.
“Because here, they are getting platform, as I told, for this publicity and money and influence, which they will use for these things I show. These horrible things. While in Ukraine, people are dying, our courts are being destroyed, our sports facilities are being destroyed. And here, we need to stop to pretending like nothing is happening.”
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Russian and Belarusian tennis players have been playing as neutrals since the war began in 2022, and also cannot take part in team competitions such as the Davis Cup and Billie Jean King Cup. Some other sports organisations and bodies have started allowing these athletes to compete. For now, it seems tennis will not be going in that direction.
“This flag is a symbol of terror. This flag is something, what the Russian soldiers (are) using, after they destroy the cities completely,” Oliynykova said. “These symbols are horrible. This is something absolutely unacceptable, and for Ukrainians, it’s very traumatising.”
The 25-year-old also said that, whilst she had received some support from other players, no Russian colleagues had spoken to her in public or private. “I get a lot of support, and I hear a lot of kind things. Sometimes these little things, they help you to feel better. Of course, there is so many people who is supporting to Ukrainians,” she added.
“We need to understand this clear. I will repeat this as many times as I need, and I wan’t people to hear.”
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