4 days ago
Tennis star Elina Svitolina exposes 'shameful' bettors who sent her death threats after loss to Naomi Osaka
Tennis star Elina Svitolina has blasted the shameful 'bettors' who have sent her unsavory messages through social media, including death threats, in recent days.
Svitolina's quarterfinal loss to Naomi Osaka at the National Bank Open in Toronto was the impetus for lines being crossed the the Ukrainian dynamo.
Svitolina posted separate messages to her Instagram story to expose the kinds of direct comments she views as inappropriate.
'To all the bettors: I'm a mom before I'm an athlete,' Svitolina wrote with the screenshots. 'The way you talk to women – to mothers – is SHAMEFUL. If your moms saw your messages, they'd be disgusted.'
Svitolina, 30, is married to fellow professional tennis player Gael Monflis, with the couple having a daughter born in 2022 together.
Svitolina's posting of direct messages comes at a time when more athletes are being encouraged to speak out against the behavior.
Svitolina posted messages to her Instagram story to expose the kinds of direct comments
Svitolina has over 1.8million followers that she shared her message with, with other stories also touching on the fact that there were messages she did not share.
In total, Svitolina detailed eight Instagram stories filled with hateful messages, all from her losing one tennis match.
All of Svitolina's social media personality was not calling out her haters, as she showed support to those that defended her after she went public with the images.
'Thank you so much for all your love,' Svitolina said. 'It means the world to me!'
Svitolina is one of the most accomplished tennis players never to appear in a Grand Slam final.
She has made it to the semifinals of the US Open and Wimbledon and the quarterfinals of the Australian Open and French Open a combined eight times.
