The shock run by Elena Rybakina to the Wimbledon title has significantly boosted her prize money earnings but she is keen to give some of that back to those in need.
The 23-year-old scored back-to-back wins over Simona Halep and Ons Jabeur en route to her first Grand Slam title at The All England Club. Going into Wimbledon, she had only reached the quarter-final stage of a major once and defeated a top 10 player on the grass once. Unfortunately for the Kazakh she will not receive a boost in the rankings due to the removal of points from the tournament but has earned £2M in prize money.
Rybakina was also offered a bonus from the Kazakh Tennis Federation as a reward for her historic achievement. She is the first Kazakh player in history to win a major title. However, Rybakina rejected the prize and instead asked for that money to be invested into the junior program. Speaking to reporters earlier this week, she also confirmed that part of her prize money will be allocated to an animal charity.
“First of all, of course, I would like to help the juniors, most of it (money) will go to them. And the second important point for me: I was at the shelter, and I was very much moved by it, so I would like to allocate money for the animal shelter,” The Astana Times quoted Rybakina as saying.
Speaking further about the junior Tour, the world No.23 describes herself as one of the lucky players who have managed to move successfully onto the Pro Tour. As a junior she reached a high of No.3 and reached the semi-final stage of two Grand Slam girls tournaments.
“The transition from juniors to an adult professional career is very difficult. Besides the fact that you have to have a good team around you, not everyone is able to continue at the professional level and only a few people reach the top. I’ve been very lucky in that respect,” said Rybakina.
Some have argued that Rybaina’s win at Wimbledon was also a triumph for Russia who was banned from participating in the tournament due to the war in Ukraine. She was born in Moscow and still has family living in the country but switched her allegiance to Kazakhstan roughly four years ago. Something other players have also done in the past.
“At that moment, which was almost five years ago, it so happened that I had an acute question: what to do next? I was about 17-18 years old. I had to decide whether I would try to play and stay in professional sports or go studying,” she explained.
“We found each other, and at the end of the day, I am very happy that my journey continues exactly with Kazakhstan. History is happening together thanks to Kazakhstan. Thank you very much for your support.”
Rybakina is now preparing for the upcoming North American hardcourt swing. Besides Wimbledon, she has won two other Tour titles and been ranked as high as 12.
