“When you find out you’re pregnant you hope everything goes well, but you also have to consider the realistic option of not being able to come back. At the time, it took me several months to realize that, to have a different perspective on my career. I think this helped me when I came back. Without expectations, I came back even faster, because I didn’t expect to do it already in Charleston.”
These are the words spoken by Elina Svitolina in an interview for the Roland Garros website. When you are a professional athlete like the Ukrainian tennis player, there are many questions you ask yourself before returning to play. The body is subject to different changes and expressing the same level is not always easy. Analyzing the other side of the coin, it is certainly not easy to spend a lot of time away from your loved ones. Becoming parents for the first time represents a big step in every person’s life.
Elina Svitolina© Dan Istitene / Staff Getty Images Spor
Focusing on her daughter Skaï, Svitolina told: “It’s very hard for us to be away from her, but it’s important that she has her routine at her house. She has two grandmothers who take care of her. We always come back as soon as we can, a short flight and we are there. We’re trying to find a balance. It’s harder for me to travel when I don’t get the results I want, because I would like to be at home with Skaï,”
Elina Svitolina© Dan Istitene / Staff Getty Images Sport
“I’ve always had big goals, like all players: to win a Slam, to be number one in the world. But I think it’s important to be aware of the journey we’ve made over the years: I’ve been in the top 10 and top 5, which may already be enough. You have to move forward with what you have and accept yourself. When I was number 50 in the world, I worked hard to get to the top 10. I believed that once I achieved my goal I would no longer worry about results and rankings. In reality you have many points to defend and more pressure. Things haven’t changed,” she added.
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