Oliynykova, who played an entertaining first-rounder against defending champion Madison Keys in Melbourne—and turned heads with her audacious temporary face tattoos—announced in a statement that her decision made prior to the match stemmed from Bondar’s participation in a 2022 Russian tournament, the North Palmyra Trophies.
The St. Petersburg exhibition even, which took place six months after Russia’s invasion into Ukraine, was sponsored by Gazprom, an oil company Oliynykova called “one of the key financial pillars of Russia’s war machine.
“These are the same funds Russia uses to kill and maim Ukrainian women and children, and to destroy our families and cities,” said the 25-year-old.
“From a moral standpoint, accepting Gazprom money in December 2022 is equivalent to playing in Nazi Germany in 1941 and being paid with property taken from victims of death camps. The same evil—just 80 years later.”
