World No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka intends to play in the Miami Open this week, organizers said on Tuesday, as fellow players offered their support following the death of her boyfriend.
Sabalenka’s partner, Belarusian former NHL ice hockey player Konstantin Koltsov, 42, died late on Monday after jumping from the balcony of a room in an upmarket resort in Miami, police said.
Two-time Grand Slam winner Sabalenka practiced at the Miami Open’s Hard Rock Stadium venue early on Tuesday afternoon as organizers said she had not asked to withdraw and was “intending to play.”
Photo: AP
The 25-year-old from Minsk, who won the Australian Open last year and retained her Melbourne title earlier this year, is due to face Spain’s Paula Badosa in the second round.
Badosa, a close friend of Sabalenka’s, said the match would be “uncomfortable.”
“Yesterday I spoke with her a lot of time. This morning the same. So I know what she’s going through,” Badosa told a news conference.
“I know the entire situation, what is happening. That for me is a little bit shocking also to go through that, because at the end she’s my best friend and I don’t want her to suffer. It’s a very tough situation,” she said.
Miami-Dade police spokesman Argemis Colome said in an e-mail that at 12:39am on Monday police “were dispatched to the St. Regis Bal Harbour Resort, in reference to a male that jumped from a balcony.”
“The Miami-Dade Police Department, Homicide Bureau, responded and has taken over the investigation of the apparent suicide of Mr. Konstantin Koltsov. No foul play is suspected,” Colome wrote.
Sabalenka frequently trains out of Miami and keeps a residence in the city.
American Jessica Pegula said that the players were aware of the tragic news and were offering support to Sabalenka.
“I think all of us all heard about it last night and then obviously there’s more news about it this morning, which was just really horrible,” she told reporters.
“All you can do is really offer support for however she wants to deal with it. You never know how someone is going to take it or how they want to grieve and everyone’s so different,” she said.
Koltsov’s death had earlier been confirmed by the Belarus Ice Hockey Association.
“We are in mourning,” the federation wrote on its Web site.
Koltsov’s playing career included a stint with the NHL’s Pittsburgh Penguins, where he made 144 appearances between 2003 and 2006.
“The Penguins extend their deepest condolences to the family and friends of former Penguins forward, Konstantin Koltsov,” the team said in a statement.
He also played for Belarus at two Winter Olympics — Salt Lake City in 2002 and Vancouver in 2010 — and in nine world championships.
He had three children with his wife Julia, whom he divorced in 2020.
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