Just hours before flying to Melbourne for the Australian Open, Oleksandra’s home in Kyiv was shaken by a russian drone attack. This is the reality for Ukrainian athletes – competing on the world stage while they or their families endure daily terror, intensified in recent weeks.
In an interview with The Sydney Morning Herald/The Age, Oliynykova spoke out against the continued presence of russian and belarusian players, even under so-called ‘neutral’ flags.
🗣️ “It is very wrong…if you research, you will find that many russian and belarusian players support Putin or Lukashenko,” she said.
She’s right.
russian tennis players Diana Shnaider and Mirra Andreeva accepted a state honour from putin after they won the silver medal at the Paris Olympics competing under a ‘neutral’ flag.
In Nov 2025, Shnaider took part in a Gazprom-funded tennis event in St Petersburg. Gazprom actively supports russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine.
After her match yesterday, Oleksandra took action – wearing a T-shirt that read: “I need your help to protect Ukrainian children and women, but I can’t talk about it here.”
Thank you, Oleksandra for your dignity, courage and moral clarity.
#StandWithUkraine #AustralianOpen2026 #AO2026 #UkrainianTennis #russiaIsATerroristState
