VIDEO - Roland-Garros 2023: when the Ukrainian Svitolina refuses to shake hands with the Belarusian Sabalenka

Jean-Baptiste Sarrazin, with AFP / Photo credit: JULIAN FINNEY / GETTY IMAGES EUROPE / Getty Images via AFP 18:28 p.m., June 06, 2023

New release of Elena Svitolina. After losing to Belarus' Aryna Sabalenka in the quarterfinals at Roland Garros 2023, the Ukrainian refused to shake hands with her opponent. The latter is accused of having been a supporter of the President of Belarusian Lukashenko, himself a supporter of Vladimir Putin who has declared war in Ukraine for more than a year now.

But what is Sabalenka playing after her victory against Svitolina?

The Belarusian player knows very well that she will not have a handshake and she is also the 1st not to want to be told about the #WarInUkraine#RolandGarrospic.twitter.com/eIyJvJ9pmn

— FC Geopolitics (@FCGeopolitics) June 6, 2023

Sabalenka defends herself

But Aryna Sablenka defended herself at a press conference. "I don't support war, which means I don't support Lukashenko right now," said Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka, world No. 2 in women's tennis. The 25-year-old Belarusian had been pressed with questions at the start of Roland Garros about her position on the invasion of Ukraine and her ties to Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, an ally of Russia.

She then decided, with the agreement of the tournament, not to give a press conference for two rounds, before appearing again after her victory over Ukraine's Elina Svitolina 6-4, 6-4 on Tuesday. Until then, Sabalenka, who could become world number 1 at the end of the Parisian fortnight, had never really spoken in his own name, but more generally.

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"It's obvious"

"No Russian or Belarusian athlete supports the war. Why do we have to say this kind of thing loud and clear? It's obvious, like 1 + 1 = 2," she said after her first-round match against another Ukrainian, Marta Kostyuk. Asked on Tuesday about her ties with President Lukashenko, whom she has met multiple times, "We played a lot of Fed Cup matches in Belarus, and he was with us, he was taking pictures of us. Nothing bad was happening at the time in Belarus, Russia or Ukraine," she said.

"I've said it many times, 'I don't support war. I don't want my country to be involved in a conflict. (...) I don't support this war,'" she said. "I don't want sport to be mixed up in politics because I'm just a 25-year-old tennis player. I just want to be a tennis player."

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"I don't regret"

Asked again about her support for Mr Lukashenko, "this is a difficult question. I don't support the war, so I don't support Lukashenko right now," Sabalenka replied. On her decision not to come to a press conference after her two previous matches, "I do not regret," she explained.

"I wasn't feeling well. In Grand Slams, there's already enough pressure to deal with like that, and I'm just trying to focus on myself and my game. I felt like my last press conference turned into a political TV show," she said. I don't have any experience in politics, I'm just a tennis player. I needed to take a step back and focus on my tennis, my game. I'm here today, and I'm ready to answer any questions you may have."