An unfiltered chat in which in a few minutes he broke some of the most stringent rules of his country, Russia. In fact, the choice made by the Russian tennis player 12th in the ranking of the WTA (Women Tennis Association), Daria Kasatkina, has a strong human and political value, who in an interview with the Russian blogger Vitya Kravchenko candidly answered “yes” to the question whether with a girl. A simple statement that, however, could get the French Open semifinalist in trouble just in the days when the Russian parliament is discussing the tightening of the already stringent restrictions on public discussions on LGBTQAI + relations.
Kasatkina added that he believes that in the long run “keeping it secret would not have been sustainable”. “It doesn’t make sense, you always end up thinking about it until I decide to talk about it. Obviously, each person decides how and when to come out, ” the athlete said.
Immediately after the interview was released, Kasatkina posted an Instagram photo of her hugging Olympic silver medalist figure skater Natalia Zabiiako with a heart-shaped emoji and in a Twitter post he called her “my cute cake “. Zabiiako. The same photo was posted by the skater who won the Olympic medal with the Russian team in 2018 also with her heart.
Since 2013, Russian law has banned any discussion of LGBTQAI + relationships that is considered to be “promoting non-traditional sexual relations” to minors. This has limited the queer community’s ability to protest or defend itself. These days the effort of Russian lawmakers is aimed at expanding this law with a total ban on “promoting” non-heterosexual relationships in a positive or neutral light and showing LBGTQ content in cinemas.
25-year-old Kasatkina is ranked 12th in the world and lives and trains in Spain. During the interview, the athlete also called for an end to the fighting in Ukraine. “Let the war end,” Kasatkina said when asked what she most desires in her life, and she describes the conflict as a “total nightmare”.
The Russian authorities insist that the conflict is not called a “war”, but a special military operation ‘and criticism of the war or the Russian army can be punished with fines or imprisonment. much more ‘serious’ with a view to returning to Russia in the future, and perhaps for this reason that Kasatkina is moved when asked if she fears she will not be able to return ‘home’ after her comments.