Russian tennis player Vitalia Diatchenko was not allowed to board a LOT Polish Airlines flight from Cairo to Nice via Warsaw because she holds a Russian passport, despite having all the necessary documents and support letters from the WTA.
Vitalia Diatchenko was stuck in Cairo airport for 18 hours with no food, sleeping on benches, and not allowed to leave. Diatchenko’s father Anatoly was born in Ukraine, works for the United Nations and has a diplomatic passport, but the airline nevertheless refused to let her board.
Her modified travel plan had to include four flights instead of two, due to visa restrictions forcing her to enter Europe through Spain, the only country that would issue her a visa. She will now miss a tennis tournament in Corsica due to these travel restrictions.
In a separate incident, Diatchenko also received abusive messages after losing a match, revealing the dark side of online sports culture. The tennis player, who competes under a neutral flag, hopes to be free of politics, racism, and nazism in sports.
This post was published on 25 April 2023 16:32
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