Yulia Starodubtseva has not been home since 2022 due to the occupation of Kakhovka

Ukrainian tennis player Yulia Starodubtseva said that she has not been home since the start of the full-scale invasion. Her hometown of Kakhovka in the Kherson region remains under temporary occupation.

The athlete admitted that she finds news of the latest Russian attacks on Ukraine particularly painful. According to her, Ukrainians’ reaction to the massive strikes remains the same—it is “horrific and tragic.”

Starodubtseva is currently unable to return to her hometown. She noted that she has no plans to travel to Ukraine for the time being, as she has no way of getting to Kakhovka. At the same time, the tennis player admitted that she would very much like to visit her homeland, even if only as a guest.

Due to her busy sports schedule, visiting Ukraine also remains difficult. At the same time, Starodubtseva emphasized that she misses the country, its people, and its culture.

Separately, the tennis player spoke about Ukrainian cuisine, which she seeks out while traveling the world. She called it the best in the world and added that even her Australian boyfriend agrees with her.

Source: Sport RBC.UA

Earlier, Ukrainian forward Roman Yaremchuk was not included in Greek club Olympiacos’s roster for the Champions League third qualifying round matches against Dutch club Nijmegen.

As a reminder, UEFA has appointed the refereeing crews for both matches between Kyiv’s “Dynamo” and Azerbaijan’s “Qarabağ” in the third qualifying round of the 2026/2027 Conference League. The first match in Lublin on August 6 will be officiated by a Danish crew led by Morten Krog, while the return match in Baku on August 13 will be officiated by English referees led by Stuart Attwell.