Ukraine's Oleksandra Oliynykova 'threatened' by WTA over stance on Russian and Belarusian players

(Getty/Alex Nicodim)

By far the most outspoken player on tour when it comes to the ongoing war in Ukraine, Oleksandra Oliynykova has taken another swipe at the WTA for threats made against her.

In an Instagram post sent out at the end of April, Olyniykova revealed shocking allegations regarding the professional women's tour, saying that she has been "threatened with fines of tens of thousands of dollars" and "disqualification" by the WTA.

In the same post, she alleged that following her strong stance at this year's Australian Open, WTA representatives mounted pressure on her to stop naming players when criticising them.

"The demand was that, despite the absence of any rule about depersonalisation in interviews and statements, I should stop mentioning players by name, as my statements could be harmful to them," she wrote.

A key part of the 2026 WTA rulebook states that: "A Player shall not address criticism of a Tournament, sponsor, player, official, the WTA, or the WTA Tour to the media or public. All such complaints should be forwarded to the Supervisor, Player Relations, or WTA Operations."

Listen to The First Serve Live every Monday at 8pm AEST in its 18th year on the SEN Network/App, Australia's only dedicated weekly tennis program on commercial radio running through till the end of November.

Just hours before making the trip to Melbourne for the year's first Grand Slam, Olyniykova's home in Kyiv was shaken by a Russian drone attack. Her father is serving as a soldier in the Ukrainian military, bravely fighting on the frontline.

In her press conference after bowing out of the tournament to then-defending champion Madison Keys, she wore a t-shirt that read: "I need your help to protect Ukrainian children and women. But I can't talk about it here."

Overnight, the world No.68 benefited from a mid-match retirement (6-1, 3-1) against Clara Tauson to book her spot in round three of the WTA 1000 Italian Open.

"I'm the victim of war. I don't think it's fair to punish me in any way and to limit my free speech in any way. I think it is horrible, actually. It's wrong, and it's not about sport's values and solidarity in sport," she said during a mixed zone interview after her win in Rome.

In response, the WTA issued the following statement: "The WTA recognises that the ongoing war in Ukraine continues to have a profound and deeply personal impact on many of our athletes. We remain unequivocal in condemning Russia’s war on Ukraine and have consistently supported our Ukrainian players since the start of the conflict.

"This is an extraordinarily sensitive situation, and we understand players will have strong personal views. All WTA athletes have the right to express themselves. At the same time, the WTA is committed to maintaining a professional and respectful environment for all athletes, regardless of nationality or country of origin. Our Code of Conduct exists to uphold this standard consistently across the Tour.

"We consistently engage with players to ensure interactions on the Tour remain professional and respectful, even in moments of heightened sensitivity. Any concerns about conduct are addressed through our established, confidential processes."

Oliynykova also sat down in an interview for Ben Rothenberg's Bounces, where she explained the extent of the WTA's threats in more detail, revealing that part of her prize money at the Charleston Open (first round exit) was deducted.

When asked how much it was, the Ukrainian replied, "It was much less than how they were trying to scare me. They tried to scare me with like, thousands and thousands — money I wouldn't be able to pay them. But in the end, it was much smaller. I think it was also part of trying to scare me. Right now, I'm actually not even sure if I’m allowed to say this, but it happened.

"At first, they were trying to scare me that [fines] were supposed to be around $50,000 or $60,000 — I'm not sure. I already forgot (laughs), because when I understood that this is actually their way to scare me and that it’s blackmailing."

She continued: "There was also the option of disqualification. But you know, what I’m just thinking now: if they will disqualify me for saying the truth, it would be sad, of course, but it would be more acceptable from my perspective than to try to put myself into these standards which I believe are not fair, and are not about sport, not about sportsmanship, but are just about the system to make money."

Since the 2022 Wimbledon Championships, Russian and Belarusian players have been eligible to compete in tournaments without their national flag.

However, just yesterday, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) shared that there would no longer be any restrictions on Belarusian athletes participating in the Games, allowing competitors to represent Belarus without their flag hidden.

"When we are speaking about Russia and Belarus, we need to understand that these are countries which are turning everything into propaganda," Oliynykova said when referring to the rule change.

The 25-year-old added, "I'm not scared to be disqualified because if I will not speak, then anything doesn't have sense anyway," as she prepares for her second round matchup against 13th seed Linda Nosková.

Sports turf that meets the moment, every match. Trust GreenLife Group for surfaces that let you play at your best. Elevate your game with expert sports ground management at GLGCorp.com