Rifle for racket: Ex-Ukraine tennis star Dolgopolov joins fight to defend country
Retired Ukraine tennis player Alexandr Dolgopolov has returned home to take up arms and defend his native city Kyiv from the Russian invasion.
FollowFormer Ukraine tennis sensation Alexandr Dolgopolov has returned home to take up arms and defend his native city Kyiv from Russian forces. The 33-year-old trading his racket for a rifle has sparked a massive social media frenzy, with several saluting him for his courage and love for his nation.
"This is my home, and we will defend it! With all the people that stayed," the 33-year-old who climbed to the highest rank of 13 in 2012 told his Instagram followers.
"Big thanks and respect to all our famous people on the grounds. Lots of respect, and I am proud, how united the country is, under such pressure of a crazy dictator," he added.
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Shortly after, Dolgopolov shared a picture on Twitter of a bulletproof vest, a rifle and a helmet, alongside other weapons with a caption that read, "Used to be rackets and strings, now this."
The Ukrainian tennis star, who retired from the sport in 2021 due to a recurring wrist injury, revealed that he fled to Turkey with his mother and sister one day before Vladimir Putin's forces invaded his country amidst fear that a "big war" was on the horizon.Â
Dolgopolov said he started "practicing shooting" in Turkey and was trained by a former "professional soldier" for about a week.
"I'm not Rambo in a week, but quite comfortable with the weapons, and can hit (a target) 3 out of 5 times, from 25 meters in a calm, practiced environment," he said.
Dolgopolov added he returned to the capital city of Kyiv with others after stocking up on ammunition in Zagreb, Croatia.
"Truth is behind us, and this is our land! I will stay in Kyiv until our victory and after," he concluded.
Dolgopolov joins several Ukrainian sports personalities who took up arms to defend their country from the Russian Armed Forces. Fellow former tennis player Sergiy Stakhovsky, who famously beat Roger Federer at the 2013 Wimbledon, has also signed up for the country's military reserves.
Two-time Olympic boxing gold medallist Vasiliy Lomachenko and world heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usky returned to Ukraine to defend their country as soon as the Russian invasion began.
Hall of Fame boxers Vitali Klitschko, the mayor of Kyiv, and Wladimir Klitschko said they "don't have another choice" but to fight.
