Ukrainian athlete shines at Billie Jean King Cup, receives prestigious award
Elina Svitolina (photo: Getty Images)
Ukraine's number one tennis player, Elina Svitolina, has won the Gainbridge Heart Award, which is annually given to female tennis players for exceptional courage, dedication to their team, and representing their country with dignity at the Billie Jean King Cup, reports the official tournament website.
How fans voted
The 30-year-old Ukrainian won the voting, receiving 33% of the votes from fans worldwide.
This allowed her to outpace her competitors – Bernarda Pera (USA, 27%), Sonay Kartal (UK, 20%), Victoria Mboko (Canada, 13%), and Ena Shibahara (Japan, 7%).
Svitolina became the third Ukrainian to receive the Heart Award since its inception in 2009. Previous winners were Kateryna Bondarenko (2016) and Anhelina Kalinina (2023).
What Svitolina said about her victory and the prize money
"It's a great honor for me to receive this award. Representing Ukraine during such a challenging time is a huge motivation. Thank you to everyone who voted. This recognition means a lot to me," commented the leader of Ukrainian tennis.
She also announced that the $3,000 prize will be donated to her charity foundation, the Svitolina Foundation, which supports young Ukrainian female tennis players.
Recent matches of Ukraine's team in the Billie Jean King Cup
In April 2025, the Ukrainian team participated in Group E qualification in Radom (Poland).
The Ukrainian national team was represented by the top two players in the national ranking, Elina Svitolina and Marta Kostyuk, and the country's best doubles pair, Lyudmyla and Nadiia Kichenok. The 10th-ranked Ukrainian player, Katarina Zavatska, was on standby.
In the qualification matches, the Ukrainians defeated the Polish (3:0) and the Swiss (2:1) national teams.
These victories and the advancement to the final allowed our team to rise eight positions in the national rankings. Currently, the "blue and yellow" team is ranked 11th in the world.
Ukraine's next match in the tournament will take place on September 17 in Shenzhen, China, where the team will face Spain in the quarterfinals of the Billie Jean King Cup.
