KYIV, Ukraine — Ukrainian tennis participant and Olympic bronze medalist Elina Svitolina pushed for a complete ban on Russian and Belarusian athletes from the 2024 Paris Video games in an interview with The Related Press on Wednesday.

Svitolina, who received her bronze medal in singles on the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, is visiting Ukraine for the primary time since Russia invaded the nation final yr. She is the newest to name for an entire ban on athletes from Russia and Belarus due to the conflict.

“It’s going to be very unhappy, and the incorrect message can be despatched to the world if Olympics going to stick with the choice to place them (Russia and Belarus) below a impartial flag,” Svitolina mentioned within the interview. “I don’t suppose that is the precise choice.”

Svitolina, who had a child with husband Gael Monfils in October, mentioned sports activities and politics in Russia are inseparable.

“You’ll be able to see that in Russia, sports activities are linked to the federal government,” Svitolina mentioned.

On Friday, Ukraine’s sports activities minister renewed a menace to boycott the Paris Olympics if Russia and Belarus are allowed to compete and mentioned Kyiv would foyer different nations to hitch.

A Ukrainian Olympic Committee assembly didn’t decide to a boycott however accepted plans to attempt to persuade worldwide sports activities officers within the subsequent two months — together with a dialogue of a attainable boycott. The leaders of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania additionally urged the Worldwide Olympic Committee to ban Russia and mentioned a boycott was a chance.

Audio system on the Ukrainian Olympic Committee’s assembly raised considerations about Russia utilizing the Paris Video games for propaganda and famous the shut ties between some athletes and the Russian army.

“Boycott can be one of many choices as a result of clearly what Russian military is doing to Ukrainian individuals, to Ukraine, it’s a horrible factor for us,” Svitolina mentioned. “I can’t think about going to the Olympics like nothing is occurring to Ukraine.”

Svitolina mentioned the choice to boycott must be mentioned with the nation’s Olympic committee with enter from each Ukrainian athlete concerned. She, nonetheless, didn’t hesitate to say what she thought was the precise factor to do.

“Our women and men are on the entrance line proper now combating Russian troopers and dying for our nation and for our freedom as nicely,” Svitolina mentioned. “And I’m very agency with my choice that boycotting is the precise option to do it.”

After a month-long break, Svitolina mentioned she is “actively getting ready” to return to tennis in April. Her first go to to Ukraine marks the longest time she has been separated from her daughter.

“In fact, I need to be together with her, however I’ve a much bigger mission to do free of charge Ukrainian individuals,” mentioned Svitolina, who got here to the nation as an envoy of United 24, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s platform for amassing charitable donations.

Throughout her transient keep, she additionally met Zelenskyy.

On Tuesday, Svitolina visited one in every of Kyiv’s maternity facilities to donate a generator, wanted to assist the operation of the hospital. Hospitals within the nation have usually been disrupted by large Russian missile assaults on Ukraine’s power infrastructure.

She mentioned this week’s go to triggered the emotions she felt on the primary days of the invasion.

“It was extraordinarily demanding for me. I used to be nonetheless enjoying on the tour then, competing at some tournaments. I couldn’t focus. I couldn’t stay my life usually. It was a horrible time for me,” she recalled. “Visiting the maternity middle stroke a chord in my memory what I used to be going by means of and the way sturdy these ladies are.”

Initially from Odesa, which now suffers frequent energy outages due to broken electrical energy infrastructure, Svitolina mentioned Feb. 24 — the date that can mark one yr for the reason that invasion began — will perpetually be a tragic day for each Ukrainian.

“That is one thing that you’d by no means want your enemy to face,” Svitolina mentioned. “It’s a really unhappy day.”

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Extra AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

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Russia-Ukraine Struggle: https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine