posted screenshots of the messages<\/a> on Instagram.<\/p>\nThe abuse was directed at her, while other racial slurs also targeted her husband, the French tennis player Gael Monfils, who is Black. One abuser hoped that Russia \u201ckills all you (expletive) Ukrainians\u201d\u00a0in the war\u00a0raging in Svitolina’s country.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo all the bettors: I\u2019m a mum before I\u2019m an athlete,\u201d Svitolina wrote in her Instagram story. \u201cThe way you talk to women \u2014 to mothers \u2014 is SHAMEFUL. If your mothers saw your messages, they\u2019d be disgusted.\u201d<\/p>\n
Earlier this year,\u00a0British player Katie Boulter\u00a0said she received death threats during the French Open targeting her and her family, while the WTA and ITF called on betting companies to do more to stem the flood of online abuse players face on social media.<\/p>\n
Boulter told the BBC in an interview that online abuse has become the norm and that she thinks many of the messages are sent by people who are placing bets on tennis matches.<\/p>\n
Her comments coincided with the WTA and ITF publishing a first season-wide report into online abuse, showing that 458 tennis players were targeted by more than 8,000 abusive comments and posts on social media in 2024. The report said 40 per cent of the abuse came from \u201cangry gamblers.\u201d<\/p>\n