'Mom before athlete': Elina Svitolina calls out online abuse after Canadian Open loss

Elina Svitolina will next shift her focus to Cincinnati after Canadian Open heartbreak.

Ukrainian tennis star Elina Svitolina has spoken out against a wave of hateful and abusive messages she received following her quarter-final loss to Naomi Osaka at the ongoing Canadian Open 2025 in Montreal.

The world No. 13 shared screenshots of the ‘shameful’ direct messages on her social media, breaking her silence after online harassment by bettors.

Svitolina lost 2-6, 2-6 to Osaka in the last-eight clash, but the fallout online turned personal and disturbing. Angry bettors and online trolls bombarded her inbox with vile insults, including death threats, personal attacks, and even abuse aimed at her family and her country, currently at war with Russia.

Responding to those online abuses, the former world no.3 said, “To all the bettors: I’m a mom before I’m an athlete. The way you talk to women – to mothers – is SHAMEFUL. If your moms saw your messages, they’d be disgusted.”

This isn’t a one-off. A growing body of evidence shows that female athletes, particularly in tennis, are targeted disproportionately. Earlier this year, British tennis star Katie Boulter also spoke out about the disturbing messages she received after her French Open second round loss.

“Hope you get cancer,” said one of the bettors in Boulter’s DM. She opened up in a BBC interview and said, “I think it just kind of shows how vulnerable we are.”

“You really don’t know if this person is on site. You really don’t know if they’re nearby or if they know where you live or anything like that.

“I don’t think it’s something that I would ever say to my worst enemy. It’s just an awful, awful thing to say to anyone. It’s horrible,” Katie Boulter added.

A recent joint report by the WTA and ITF, released in June 2025, revealed that 40% of all detected abuse came from angry gamblers upset over match outcomes.

Just ten repeat offenders were behind 12% of the abuse. However, now most of their accounts suspended or removed.

Also Read: Aryna Sabalenka goes topless! WTA No. 1 breaks Internet with bold summer post (See Pics)

In total, 39 abusive accounts have been reported to tennis authorities and the betting industry for further action. The report also confirmed that one of the angry bettors had sent 263 abusive messages over the course of the season.

The 18-time WTA title winner is having a decent season so far. Elina Svitolina reached the quarterfinals at both Wimbledon and the French Open and also won the WTA 250 Open de Rouen in April.

Now, the 30-year-old is gearing up for the final Grand Slam of the year, starting her hard-court swing at the WTA 1000 Cincinnati Masters, with the main draw beginning on August 9.

For more updates, follow Khel Now on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram; download the Khel Now Android App or IOS App and join our community on Whatsapp & Telegram