Gael Monfils′ abrupt separation from fellow tennis star Elina Svitolina is reportedly the catalyst behind the French player’s sudden departure from the sport.
This wasn’t the career finale Monfils had envisioned, any hopes for a final bow in front of a home crowd at the Paris Masters have been dashed after the Frenchman removed himself from the sport’s drug-whereabouts list.
Gaël Monfils and Elina Svitolina has announced their separation. Instagram
The widely beloved French player was expected to end his career on October 31, but the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) confirmed that Monfils was added to their “retired athletes” list on October 5.
The 40-year-old was suddenly removed from the sport’s anti-doping protocols, which renders him ineligible to compete in any sanctioned tennis tournaments.
The timing of his abrupt departure from the sport is reportedly linked to this period of major personal upheaval, according to French publication L’Equipe.
Monfils has been struggling to cope with the end of his marriage to Svitolina and ultimately abandoned his planned farewell events in Lyon and Paris.
L’Equipe also described the veteran player as an emotional individual who was deeply affected by this stressful situation, someone who makes rash decisions when emotionally affected.
“When Monfils learned of the news, it hit him like a ton of bricks, and tennis, which he had often experienced as a kind of gentle madness, suddenly lost all meaning,” the L’Equipe article reported.
“He was no longer able to play.”
The divorce was announced on social media by Svitolina on Monday, with the sixth ranked Ukrainian writing that the split was the “the most difficult thing I have ever had to share.”
Svitolina outlined the tough emotional impact the war in her country had on her well-being, and how Monfils supported her to cope with the struggle when she took a break from tennis to recover.
“But some battles happen deep inside you, and no amount of love from someone else can win them for you,” she wrote.
Gaël Monfils on the retired players list. ITIA
“With time, I came to understand that I need to find my way back to myself and that I cannot do that within our marriage.”
Monfils and Svitolina have a daughter together.
“Together, we built a beautiful life, and we were given the most precious gift of all, our daughter, Skai,” Svitolina said.
“Skai will always come first. Our marriage is ending, but our family is not. We will always be her parents, side by side, at every step of her life.”