Times are hard for Evgeniy Zukin but he says it is nothing compared to what is happening in his home country of Ukraine.
I spoke with Zukin via a video call from London where he is currently residing amid the Russian invasion of his homeland which began almost 14 months ago on February 24th 2022. Despite the challenging circumstances, he continues his role as the Executive Director of the Ukranian Tennis Federation (UTF). Perhaps the most notable thing about our conversation was how composed he remained throughout despite the topics discussed. You never quite know how a person from Ukraine might react when they are asked if they have any sympathy for those from Russia given the circumstances.
Throughout our 20-minute call, Zukin expressed both disappointment and understanding regarding the decision of The All England Club to permit Russian and Belarussian players to participate in Wimbledon this year.
“Nobody supported Wimbledon and the LTA in their decision to not allow them to play (in 2022). All of the tennis world left them alone. Unfortunately, they couldn’t fight on their own against the professional Tours and all the rest. It’s unfortunate but at the same time, we understand this decision.” Zukin told Ubitennis.
It is a tough time for tennis in Ukraine. Some tournaments have been given the green light to take place under special regulations which require protocols to be in place in case an air raid siren goes off. Still, they are determined to maintain their position on the tennis map with ambitions of hosting more tournaments over the coming months depending on the war.
Financially it has been tough. The only major tennis governing body to have given a fund to the UTF is the International Tennis Federation (ITF) – $100,000 in 2022 and 2023. They have also received donations from national federations with the most recent of those coming from Italy.
“We have lost all our income from sponsorships, commercial activities, licences and from players’ tournament fees etc. All of this is no longer on our balance sheet,” Zukin said.
Another challenge has emerged from the UTF’s own government. Recently the Minister of the Cabinet of Ministers, Oleh Nemchinov, announced that his athletes would not be allowed to participate in Olympic qualifying events if Russians are taking part. A total of 262 Ukrainian athletes have been killed and 363 sports facilities destroyed since the start of the war, according to the country’s sports minister Vadym Huttsait (as of April 2nd 2023).
However, enforcing such a rule in tennis would be extremely hard, as was pointed out in an open letter by the UTF. The Olympic qualification criteria set out by the ITF states players must compete in a set number of Davis Cup or Billie Jean King Cup ties unless they have an exemption. Although the vast majority of those to qualify will be based on their ranking right after the 2024 French Open. So in essence every tournament which awards ranking points is a qualifying event for players. At the Tokyo Olympics, Elina Svitolina became the first Ukrainian tennis player to win a medal of any kind after clinching bronze in the women’s singles tournament.
“Everybody knows that the Russian and Belarussian political regimes are using their players as a tool in their propaganda,” it is claimed by the UTF official.
In a wide-ranging interview, Ubitennis also spoke with Zukin about the ongoing criticism of the WTA’s handling of Ukranian players, Iga Swiatek’s vocal support for his country and potentially boycotting the Olympics.
UBITENNIS: How has the Ukrainian Tennis Federation (UTF) been coping with the ongoing war in your country?
ZUKIN: It is not easy. I am away from my home country and my home town of Kyiv. I’m working mostly from London but I do a lot of travelling to explain our (the Federation’s) position about what is going on in the tennis world with this war.
Of course, this is not easy but it is nothing compared to what our soldiers on the battlefields are feeling.
UBITENNIS: How have the Federation been able to look after their players given the circumstances? What support systems are in place?
ZUKIN: We started some national tournaments in Ukraine last December under the special regulations that have been provided by the government for organizing sporting events. There are shelters and special protocols in place in case of air raid sirens and threats. We are doing one or two national events a month and in most of the clubs the normal tennis process (is continuing).
We are talking about Kyiv and western Ukraine. Not the regions which are close to the battlefields. In the regions that are not so much affected, tennis players have the opportunity to practice, and play some club and national events. This is how it is being organised inside the country at the moment. We hope that during the summer period, we will find more suitable places to host national events.
UBITENNIS: A lot has been said by your players regarding the WTA and their current management of the ongoing war. What is your opinion about how the WTA is helping Ukranian players and should they do more?
ZUKIN: Of course, we think that the ATP and WTA could have done more to support Ukrainian players. I know our female players are not happy with the treatment the WTA is giving them. From our side, we are not happy that professional tours – both the WTA and ATP – have a firm stance on accepting Russians (on their Tour) under a neutral flag.
The thing is that this is a formality. Everybody knows that the Russian and Belarussian political regimes are using their players as a tool in their propaganda. We think this is not right whilst the war is ongoing.
UBITENNIS: So how often do you communicate with the WTA or ATP?
ZUKIN: We (the UTF) are members of the International Tennis Federation. We don’t have any links to the ATP or WTA. I’ve had one or two conversations with them but it is the players who are the members there. So it is mostly their prerogative to speak to the Tours.
UBITENNIS: One big event coming up in the UK is Wimbledon which decided this year to lift its ban on Russian and Belarussian players participating. What is your reaction to this decision?
ZUKIN: I’m sorry that the decision taken last year wasn’t prolonged this year. But we also understand that nobody supported Wimbledon and the LTA in their decision to not allow them to play. All of the tennis world left them alone. Unfortunately, they couldn’t fight on their own against the professional Tours and all the rest. It’s unfortunate but at the same time, we understand this decision.
UBITENNIS: You said nobody supports Wimbledon and the LTA within the tennis world regarding their 2022 ban. How did this make you as a Ukranian feel?
ZUKIN: We felt sorry but this is much bigger than this whole game. The main goal is to stop the war and stop the killing of people every day. We think, as every Ukranian does, that every tool needs to be used to stop the war.
UBITENNIS: One player who has spoken out about the situation is WTA world No.1 Iga Swiatek. Would you like to see more players follow her example?
ZUKIN: Of course, if there would be an agreement within the players’ council or their environment that players from Russia should be stopped from playing during the war that would help a lot. But unfortunately, people like Swiatek or Petra Kvitova are in the minority and not the majority. It is really bad that nobody cares enough about what is going on.
They (Swiatek and Kvitova) come from countries that are really close to Ukraine and they feel how it is affecting them because of the refugees and the threat from Russia if Ukraine falls. They know how it felt to live during the Soviet Union era and they have a much better feel about what is going on. We are thankful that they provided this position to the public that the war shouldn’t be normalised.
UBITENNIS: Players from Russia and Belarus argue that they shouldn’t be punished for the actions of their governments. Do you in any way have any sympathy towards the situation that they are currently in?
ZUKIN: I have sympathy towards players such as Daria Kasatkina who has openly said that she is against the war. Everybody who is trying to somehow not get involved or stay silent (about the war)… I understand that there are threats for them but these threats are nothing in comparison to what is going on in Ukraine.
UBITENNIS: Recently your federation wrote an open letter in response to calls from some cabinet ministers for Ukrainian athletes not to compete against Russian athletes in tournaments. In the world of tennis, this would be almost impossible. Have you received a response to this letter?
ZUKIN: Obviously, everybody in Ukraine is emotional and driven by hurt. Everybody has close ones and loved ones who have been killed in the war. We know this decision has been announced publically but we haven’t received any documents regarding the path to providing this. We are waiting for the next steps and are in constant talks with our government, as well as the National Olympic Committee. We have publically raised our concerns that such a move would be very bad for the sport. We can’t stop players from playing in tournaments. We need to continue competing and hopefully, we can come to a wise solution.
UBITENNIS: There have been talks about potentially boycotting the Olympics if Russia is allowed to take part, even under a neutral status. Would you support such a move?
ZUKIN: Boycotting the Olympics is something that has been widely discussed. The thing is that for tennis it is much easier to boycott the Olympics as it is one tournament. We think that in case the war isn’t going to stop, we see no chance for them to participate. The Olympics were made to stop the wars and this is another tool (boycotting) that must be used to stop the war and get Russian troops back to their territory. We are going to do everything we can for them not to participate in the Olympics in case the war goes on.
UBITENNIS: So looking ahead to the future, what is your federation’s plan for the next 6-12 months?
ZUKIN: We have the Billie Jean King Cup tie against the Czech Republic coming up which is being organised on neutral ground in Turkey. Then we are going to get ready for all the age groups’ summer cups. We are continuing to find new hosts for the national events. We are managing players individually, if they need advice or support in their life abroad as refugees. I can assure you I wake up with tennis in my head and I go to sleep with the same. A lot of work is going on but unfortunately, there are not as many people in our office as before the war. We are doing everything we can to help players, coaches and refugees to continue being in tennis.
UBITENNIS: Finally, how is the UTF managing to function financially? Are you receiving funding from elsewhere?
ZUKIN: Financial problems are something we are experiencing. We have lost all our income from sponsorships, commercial activities, licences and from players’ tournament fees etc. All of this is no longer on our balance sheet.
We have some reserves. We have been making the most of the money earned from the Billie Jean King Cup and Davis Cup. The ITF is the only tennis organisation that has established a fund for us. One hundred thousand dollars were spent last year through this fund which was mostly on Ukrainian players’ travels and junior teams. This year this fund awarded us another $100,000.
Other donations have come from Nordic countries such as Denmark, Sweden, Finland and Iceland at around $20,000 which haven’t been used yet.
Now we have incredible news that the Italian tennis federation has donated $170,000 from their profit from the Italian Masters.
So far nothing from these donations has gone to administration costs. It has all been given to players, teams and events. Last year we held four ITF junior tournaments in Poland and it is something we want to do to show that our Federation still exists in the tennis world and that the Ukrainian flag is flying high.
EDITOR’S NOTE: According to the latest report from the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), 8,451 civilians have been killed and another 14,156 injured since the start of the war. This doesn’t include military deaths which one BBC report says could be in the region of over 60,000 based on information from ‘most US and European officials’, although this has not been verified.
