Elina Svitolina Sheds Light on Impacts of War in Her Home Country Ukraine.
In a CNN article entitled “Ukrainian tennis player Elina Svitolina on a ‘mission to help war-torn country,” author Ben Church shares the efforts of Ukrainian professional tennis player, Elina Svitolina to raise awareness of the current state of her home country. Taking a break from tennis, she is focused on her foundation, which aims to provide life lessons to children through tennis, as well as UNITED24, an organization founded by Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky that raises funds for medical supplies in the current war effort. Called on to act as an ambassador by Zelensky, Svitolina works to raise awareness within the international sports community about the real-world impacts of the war and the needs of Ukrainians today.
Born in the eastern city of Odessa, Svitolina speaks to the uncertainty and anxiety that the war has caused her family and friends who still live in Ukraine. “It is very, very tough for people to go through hell each day,” she shares, “for people who are still in Ukraine, they are mentally struggling.”