During the Australian Open, Ukrainian tennis player Elizaveta Kotlyar shook hands with Russian representative Vlada Mincheva. What do the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Ukraine and the Tennis Federation of Ukraine say about this — read in the material Facts ICTV.
Reaction of the Minister of Youth and Sports
Acting Minister of Youth and Sports Matvey Bedny responded to the situation with 16-year-old Ukrainian tennis player Elizaveta Kotlyar, who shook hands with Russian Vlada Mincheva after her loss in the first round of the junior Australian Open.
— My messenger is bursting with messages that 16-year-old Ukrainian tennis player Elizaveta Kotlyar shook hands with a Russian woman after a match at the Australian Open. We are now studying the reasons for such an act, as well as all the circumstances, and will later give the position of the Ministry, — he wrote on Facebook.
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In his opinion, the Russians provoked our athlete.
— The first impression was that the Russians provoked our athlete. Anyone who has participated in major tournaments knows the tension that occurs there, and athletes can become easy targets for provocations. Moreover, we see how at every tournament the Russians try to use Ukrainian athletes for their own propaganda. This is exactly what we saw performed by Russian propaganda media, — he noted.
In addition, Bedny noted that before assessing the situation, it is necessary to study it in detail and hear from Elizaveta Kotlyar herself and her parents.
— We continue to study the situation and together with the sports federation we will make informed decisions. And of course, we will comment on everything openly, — he emphasized.
Reaction Ukrainian Tennis Federation
B The Ukrainian Tennis Federation reacted to the exchange of a friendly gesture between a Ukrainian and a Russian athlete after the championship and noted that they support the general position of Ukrainian tennis players not to shake hands with representatives of the aggressor countries.
— Our leading players are aware of this and support this position. But there can always be mistakes. This error happened to our player today. Elizaveta Kotlyar is still a minor, so we contacted her father Konstantin for his commentary on the incident that gave Russian propaganda the opportunity to begin its dirty work, — noted by the department.
So, the father of a young athlete reported that “the girl was very nervous during the competition and automatically performed the post-match ritual — “shaked her opponent’s hand, did not understand that behind the net stood a representative of the country that had attacked our Motherland”. He noted that the athlete very much regrets her actions.
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Recall that in the first round of the junior Australian Open, Ukrainian Elizaveta Kotlyar lost to Russian representative Vlada Mincheva (2:6, 4:6). After the loss, she shook hands with the Russian woman.
The propaganda media has already picked up this episode and called it a “small but important victory”.
