Tennis player Elina Svitolina of Ukraine is protesting Russia’s ongoing invasion of her nation by wearing a black ribbon at Wimbledon 2024, some two and a half years after it began in February 2022.
In the round of 16, the 29-year-old defeated China’s Xinyu Wang 6-2, 6-1, and will now play Elena Rybakina, the 2022 Wimbledon winner, on Wednesday.
After defeating Iga Swiatek, the top-seeded player in the world, at the Championships last year, Svitolina is aiming to make it to the Wimbledon semifinals once more.
Should she prevail over Rybakina, it will be her third appearance at the All England Club in the last four meetings; nevertheless, the fourth-seeded player will not be an easy opponent.
Following Svitolina’s win over Wang and ahead of her quarter-final showdown with Rybakina, fans want to know exactly why the tennis star wears a black ribbon.
What does Elina Svitolina’s black ribbon mean?
Svitolina wore a black ribbon on her white top on Monday to pay respect to those who lost their life after Russia’s strike on a children’s hospital in Kyiv this week.
Traditionally, Wimbledon players must wear all-white outfits but an exception was made for Svitolina given the latest brutal assault on Ukraine.
‘It’s been approved by Wimbledon,’ Svitolina said about the black ribbon. ‘I feel it would be understandable after such a big attack on my country.’
Elina Svitolina gives emotional speech after deadly attack on Ohmatdyt Children’s Hospital
Speaking in her on-court interview on Monday, Svitolina fought back tears and said: ‘It was a good performance from my side today. It’s a very difficult day today for Ukrainian people.’
After a long pause, she added: ‘It was not easy to focus on the match. Since the morning, it’s very difficult to read the news, just to go on the court… I’m happy I could play today and get a win.’
Speaking in her post-match press conference, Svitolina said: ‘Yeah, it’s incredibly sad day today for all Ukrainians.
‘It was really difficult for me to really be here in a way and do anything. I just wanted to be in my room, just be there with my emotions, with everything. You know, when you have these sad days where you don’t want to do anything, it was this kind of day for me.
‘It’s difficult really to explain, I guess, because of course for us Ukrainians, it’s very close to our heart and very sensitive topic, very sensitive emotions that we feel every single day.
‘But today was one of the days where it was even more difficult because the missile landed on the hospital, the kids’ hospital.
‘Straightaway you see the images and everything that happened there. So many kids lost their lives. Yeah, it’s extremely tough day today.
‘I [still] have my family there [in Ukraine]. My dad just was there for a couple of weeks to see my grandmother. I have my uncle. His family is there.
‘I have many friends there. Pretty much everyone is based in Ukraine. I have contact pretty much every single day. I’ve been talking, yeah, on a daily basis with Sergiy Stakhovsky as well. I guess you guys know him. Also a well-known name in tennis. He’s helping a lot with my foundation.’