Lyudmila Kichenok: I really want to inspire Ukrainians who fight in the war by playing in tournaments

Ukrainian tennis player Lyudmila Kichenok told about the mood with which she performs at tournaments against the backdrop of a full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine.

“During the tournament, I try not to read the news at all, because some kind of psychological fatigue has already accumulated. I play every week. Since I left Kyiv on February 25, I have been playing tournaments every week. And I already want to go home, but I understand that I can’t go back there yet and I have to deal with it somehow, ”said Lyudmila.

“But in fact, I understand that I have not the worst option, if we take all our Ukrainians. I was able to leave, I play tennis, I do my own thing, I earn money, I continue to live, in principle, in the same way as I lived before, only I cannot return home. At the same time, there are a lot of people who are in Ukraine, who have lost everything… I can’t complain about anything at all, but I really want to return home.”

“Playing at tournaments, I really want to somehow inspire our compatriots – Ukrainians who are fighting in the war. I can’t imagine how it is. I was there one day – I almost lost my mind. It’s hard to comprehend what’s going on at home. I really want to inspire our people, I will try my best to go further.”

Yesterday Lyudmila Kichenok reached the quarterfinals of the Roland Garros doubles tournament. The Ukrainian plays in the tournament together with Elena Ostapenko from Latvia.