He swapped his racket for a gun.
Former Ukrainian tennis player Sergiy Stakhovsky has announced that he will take up arms to fight against the Russian invasion in his country.
Retired since the start of the season, the ex-31st world player justified his decision, in tears, with Sky Sports.
🇺🇦Tennis player Sergiy Stakhovsky tearfully reveals he is going back to Ukraine to join the army and fight against the Russian invasion.pic.twitter.com/2mIlY707d9
— Sam Street (@samstreetwrites) February 26, 2022
"The army has opened the reserve list to anyone who is ready to fight, gather weapons and be part of the territorial resistance," he explained.
There are a lot of people on the list.
I registered as a reservist last week, but I did not have the necessary documents to enter the country.
They changed the rules and now anyone who wants to can join.
I have no military experience.
I have experience with weapons, in a private capacity.
I don't see why the majority of my compatriots have to risk their lives to protect their families and send them away from all this..."
Yaroslav Popovych ready to fight
Very active on social networks since the start of the Russian offensive, Sergiy Stakhovsky, 36, takes the step of the Ukrainian heavyweight world champion boxer Oleksandr Usyk, also back in his country.
Two other boxing legends, Vitali Klitschko — mayor of Kiev — and his brother Wladimir have announced that they are ready to fight in the Ukrainian army.
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For his part, Yaroslav Popovych, a former Ukrainian cyclist and current sports director of the Trek-Segafredo team, feels ready to take up arms.
“I ask myself a lot of questions and I can clearly see that NATO is not going to intervene… It would be a world war.
So they are using Ukraine to protect Europe.
For the past two days, I have only thought of going to my country and taking up arms, he explains to L'Équipe.
I hesitated a lot in 2014 (
during the annexation of Crimea by Russia
), when I was still a runner.
I told my wife Friday night (
February 25
) and she is very angry.
Yet I feel it inside of me, I can't do nothing.
Yeah, I'm scared of course, but in 2014 people were under bombs every day, even though a lot less people were talking about it, and I didn't go there.
Today, I don't want to hide anymore
.
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