Conflicts: Panic: Ukrainian tennis player raises serious allegations

Due to panic attacks, the Ukrainian tennis player Lessia Zurenko has levied serious accusations against the Women’s Professional Womenization WTA and claimed to take legal action. She had experienced “pain, fear, panic attacks, humiliation”, the 35-year-old wrote at X, without responding to the exact background. In her “worst nightmares” she could not imagine that the tour “would become a terrifying and strange place”. She was unable to do her work.

The background is apparently the handling of the WTA with the Russian attack war against Zurenko’s home Ukraine. In this context, Zurenko had already made allegations.

She “tried to find protection and justice within the WTA”, wrote the former top 30 player in her detailed post. “But I was confronted with indifference and injustice”. The WTA refused to protect it. Information was held back to silence it. Most recently, she was active on the WTA Tour in November 2024.

WTA reacts to allegations: “appropriate” traded

The WTA reacted to the allegations on the DPA request. She “acted appropriately and in accordance with our rules at all times,” said the organization. On the tennis tour, Russian and Belarusian tennis players are allowed to compete with neutral status after the beginning of the war of aggression.

“From the beginning, the WTA has steadfastly and clearly convicted the war of Russia against Ukraine and the Russian government’s approach to the Ukrainian people,” said the statement. The WTA “took numerous steps to support our Ukrainian players”. The organization takes the view that “individual athletes should not be punished for the actions of their governments”.