Svitolina announces separation from Monfils after five years of marriage

Elina Svitolina has announced that she and Gaël Monfils are separating after five years of marriage. The world No. 6 posted a long statement on Instagram on Monday. In it she ties the decision to what she calls years of quiet damage from Russia's war against Ukraine.

"This is the most difficult thing I have ever had to share," the 32-year-old Ukrainian wrote, according to Sky Sports. The couple married in July 2021 and have a four-year-old daughter, Skai.

"What the war has done to me inside"

Svitolina has long been one of the most visible Ukrainian voices in sport since the full-scale invasion. She has used her matches and her platform to raise money and awareness at home. In the statement, though, she wrote about something she says she has rarely discussed in public.

"Everyone knows how much Ukraine means to me. What I have rarely spoken about is what the war has done to me inside," she wrote. Reports of the post describe her talking about sleepless nights and growing self-doubt. Sportskeeda's account quotes her as feeling she was "slowly losing" herself.

"With time, I came to understand that I need to find my way back to myself and that I cannot do that within our marriage," Svitolina continued. She also praised the way Monfils responded: "Gael listened. He has respected what I need with a strength and grace I will never forget."

The statement does not blame either of them. World Tennis Magazine quotes Svitolina describing the break-up as "only two people who loved each other deeply and a story that is changing shape". She was just as clear about where their focus will stay: "Skai will always come first. Our marriage is ending, but our family is not."

A tennis love story that played out in public

Svitolina and Monfils were one of the best-known couples in tennis. They split briefly in early 2021, got engaged weeks later and married that summer. Their daughter Skai was born in October 2022. A few months ago they were still sharing a court: Sky Sports notes they reached the semi-finals of the US Open mixed doubles together this summer.

Fonseca ends 2026 season early, will not defend Basel title

The news comes two weeks after Monfils' own career quietly came to an end. The International Tennis Integrity Agency confirmed to AFP that the 40-year-old Frenchman has been officially listed as retired since 5 October. That rules him out of the Lyon wildcard he had been given and of a last appearance at the Paris Masters. His final match was a three-set defeat to Learner Tien in the second round of the US Open on 3 September. Monfils, a former world No. 6, has not explained in public why he retired early.

Where Svitolina's season stands

On court, Svitolina's most recent outing was the Wuhan Open, where she lost in the quarter-finals to Britain's Sonay Kartal. Kartal went on to reach the final, which she lost to Maja Chwalińska. Svitolina still sits inside the world's top six, and for her the rest of the 2026 season now looks set to be played in a very different personal setting.

Monfils, meanwhile, already has his next chapter mapped out. According to ICI, he will join the Swiss wealth management firm Alphaswiss in January 2027. He leaves the tour with 13 titles, three Masters 1000 finals and two Grand Slam semi-finals.