Elina Svitolina announces her separation from Gaël Monfils: "Our marriage is ending, but our family is not"

Elina Svitolina has announced the end of her marriage to Gaël Monfils through a statement on Instagram in which she explains the difficult personal moment she is going through. The Ukrainian speaks about the suffering that the war in her country has caused her and about a painful decision: "I need to find myself again and I cannot do that within our marriage".

"This is the hardest thing I have had to share," the message begins. Svitolina recalls that last year she explained that she needed to step away from the courts because she was not in an emotional condition to compete. Now she has wanted to reveal what was behind it: "What you did not see were the sleepless nights, the doubts, and the feeling that I was losing myself little by little".

I need to find myself again, and I can't do that within our marriage

Svitolina

The tennis player highlights Monfils' support throughout that entire process. "Gaël saw it all. He never let go of my hand. We fought together for a long time, with everything we had," she explains. But she also expresses the limits of that help: "Some battles are fought deep within oneself, and no one else's love can win them for you".

Svitolina says that understanding what she needed and conveying it to her husband has been especially hard. "It is the hardest truth I have ever had to face and the hardest thing I have ever had to say to the person I love." About the Frenchman, she highlights his response: "He respected what I need with a strength and an elegance I will never forget."

The statement is imbued with affection and gratitude toward the person who has shared her best and worst moments. "Gaël has loved me in my greatest joys and in my darkest moments, and I have loved him with all my heart," she writes.

A painful situation

Above the separation is their daughter Skai, whom she places at the center of this new stage. "Skai will always come first. Our marriage is ending, but our family is not. We will always be her parents, together, every step of her life."

Svitolina concludes the announcement with a request for respect for both of them and without blaming anyone: "There are only two people who have loved each other deeply and a story that is changing shape." And she asks for understanding and privacy: "We ask for your kindness and the space we need to heal."