Elina Svitolina says her marriage to Gaël Monfils is ending
The Ukrainian tennis player linked her decision to her struggle with the emotional toll of the war in her homeland and said their daughter remains their priority.
Elina Svitolina said on Monday, 19 October, that her marriage to fellow tennis player Gaël Monfils is ending. In a public statement, the Ukrainian described how Russia’s war in her homeland had affected her emotionally and said their daughter, Skai, would remain their priority.
Svitolina said she had struggled with sleepless nights, doubts and a feeling that she was losing herself. She linked those experiences to the war and to a period when she stepped away from tennis because she was not in the right emotional state to play.
What Svitolina said about the separation
“With time, I came to understand that I need to find my way back to myself and that I cannot do that within our marriage,” she wrote in the statement quoted by Reuters, carried by Channel NewsAsia, and The Times of India. She described telling Monfils as a painful decision, saying it was the hardest truth she had faced.
Svitolina said Monfils had supported her through that difficult period. “Gael saw all of it. He never let go of my hand,” she wrote. She asked for kindness and privacy for the family and said neither partner was to blame for the separation.
Their plans as parents
The couple married in July 2021 and welcomed Skai in October 2022, Reuters reported. Svitolina said their daughter would come first as the couple’s relationship changes: “Our marriage is ending, but our family is not.” She said she and Monfils would remain by Skai’s side as her parents.
Svitolina, 32, was ranked world No. 6 at the time of the announcement and had recently secured a place at the season-ending WTA Finals in Indian Wells, California, according to Reuters. Her statement described the effect of her difficulties away from the court; it did not announce a change to her tennis schedule.
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Sources and context
- Svitolina announces end of marriage to Monfils as Ukrainian cites toll of warReuters, carried by Channel NewsAsia
- Elina Svitolina announces split from Gael Monfils: ‘Our marriage is ending, but our family is not’The Times of India
AI-assisted article checked against the listed sources. NewsJaws did not conduct interviews or attend the reported events.