"Absolute nobody"- Tarpischev slams Svitolina for Ukraine invasion comments

Elina Svitolina has spoken out a few times about the Russian invasion of Ukraine and in a recent interview, the president slammed the player for her comments.

Elina Svitolina is one of the Ukrainian players who has taken a softer stance on her colleagues from Russian arguing that it's a shame they will be missing the event in London however she, like many others, simply wanted to see the players condemn the actions of their country. Asked about that, Tarpischev was harsh calling her a nobody:

“There is no need to pay attention [to what Svitolina says], this is not only my opinion, but also what lawyers think. Because of any statement, we [Russian players] can be excluded from some competitions. Now we are playing, everything is fine with us. It's stupid to react at all. Who is Svitolina? Absolutely nobody."

Svitolina's most recent comments sparked the harsh reaction the president. This is what she said:

“This is very sad because many athletes from different countries came up to us and showed us their support. That's why it really hurts us and we don't understand why exactly [Russian and Belarusian players] didn't. For us, for Ukrainians, it's very important that they speak out, that they choose which side they take."