Daria Meshcheriakova

Daria Meshcheriakova
Daria Meshcheriakova
Born	Luhansk, Ukraine
Education	Kyiv-Mohyla Academy (MA); University of Jena (MA);
Occupation	Journalist

Last updated November 05, 2024

Daria Meshcheriakova^{[lower-alpha 1]} is a Ukrainian sports and political journalist. Born in Luhansk in eastern Ukraine, she was educated at the Kyiv-Mohyla Academy and the University of Jena. She lived in Kyiv, working for Segodnya and other outlets, before the Russian invasion in 2022. She continued to work after she took refuge in Kosovo. At the 2023 French Open, she engaged tennis player Aryna Sabalenka in a pair of exchanges about the invasion, leading the player to skip her next couple of press conferences.

Early life and education

Meshcheriakova was born in the city of Luhansk in the Donbas, eastern Ukraine, to a Russian father from Rostov-on-Don and a Ukrainian mother.^[1]^[2] She spent much of her childhood with her grandmother in Millerovo, Russia, but would eventually cut off that side of the family when ethnic tensions escalated.^[2]^[3] She went to the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy in the Ukrainian capital beginning in 2006.^[2] She later studied political science and the Yugoslav Wars at the University of Jena in Germany.^[4]^[5]

Career

Early career, Kyiv to Kosovo

Meshcheriakova wrote for the newspaper Segodnya in Kyiv before moving to Berlin to work for Der Tagesspiegel .^[6] When war broke out in the Donbas in 2014, she came home to visit Luhansk, which was soon heavily shelled by pro-Russian forces, before returning to Kyiv and Segodnya.^[6] After participating in a program for Eastern European journalists with the public broadcaster Deutsche Welle in Germany, she "immersed herself in journalism" in Kyiv, including helping launch a sports news startup which shuttered after three months in 2018.^[6]

Before the full-scale invasion by Russia in early 2022, Meshcheriakova remained in Kyiv, doing freelance sports journalism and working for the German embassy.^[1]^[7]^[8] Ten days into the invasion, Meshcheriakova fled to relatives in Maastricht, the Netherlands, distressed by shelling near her apartment building.^[4]^[9]^[10] Her parents remained in Russian-occupied Luhansk after briefly staying with family across the Russian border.^[5]^[6]^[9] After two months in the Netherlands, she moved to Pristina, Kosovo, in May 2022, receiving a salary and housing from the Kosovo–sponsored Journalists in Residence program of the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF).^[1]^[5]^[8] There, resuming her journalism work, she wrote and gave many interviews about the war for Kosovo media and covered sports for the Ukrainian website Tribuna .^[6]^[8] She returned to Kyiv for the first time since the invasion in February 2023.^[10]

Tennis and the war

In May 2023, while living near Paris, Meshcheriakova decided to go to the 2023 French Open as an independent journalist to question Russian and Belarusian tennis players about their attitudes toward the war.^[4]^[9]^[11] She twice confronted world No. 2 tennis player Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus in the press room; Sabalenka had met multiple times with Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko, an ally of Russia, and reportedly signed a letter endorsing him after a series of anti-government protests in 2020.^[9]^[12]^[13] At a first-round press conference on 28 May, when asked by Meshcheriakova what she had to say "to the world" about the war, Sabalenka offered her most direct words on the subject to date, including: "How can we support the war? Nobody, normal people will never support it".^[9]^[14] Meshcheriakova followed up at Sabalenka's second-round press conference on 31 May, asking about her reported association with Lukashenko; when Sabalenka refused to comment, Meshcheriakova said, "So you basically support everything because you cannot speak up? You're not a small person, Aryna", before the moderator cut in to change the subject.^[9]^[14]

Sabalenka did not attend her next mandatory press conferences on 2 and 4 June, saying she "did not feel safe" facing politics-related questions; instead a transcript was released of an interview she did with a Women's Tennis Association (WTA) employee behind closed doors.^[9]^[14]^[15] Meshcheriakova did not have her press credentials revoked but also did not encounter Sabalenka again, having planned 3 June to be her last day at the tournament.^[9]^[11] On 6 June, when Sabalenka returned to the press room and a Politico Europe journalist asked her directly about her president, she said, "It's a tough question ... I don't support war, meaning I don't support Lukashenko right now".^[12]^[14]^[15]

Meshcheriakova has also interviewed other Russian or Belarusian tennis players about the war, such as Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and Karen Khachanov.^[11]^[16]

Notes

↑ Also transliterated Darya Meshcheryakova; Russian: Дарья Мещерякова; Ukrainian: Дар'я Мешчаракова

Related Research Articles

Belarus and Ukraine both are full members of the Baku Initiative and Central European Initiative. In 2020, during the Belarusian protests against president Lukashenko, the relationship between Ukraine and Belarus began to deteriorate, after the Ukrainian government criticized Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko. In the waning days of 2021, the relationship between both countries rapidly deteriorated, culminating in a full-scale invasion on 24 February 2022. Belarus has allowed the stationing of Russian troops and equipment in its territory and its use as a springboard for offensives into northern Ukraine but has denied the presence of Belarusian troops in Ukraine. Even though part of the Russian invasion was launched from Belarus, Ukraine did not break off diplomatic relations with Belarus, but remain frozen. In July 2024, Lukashenko described Ukraine as an enemy.

Daria Sergeyevna Kasatkina is a Russian professional tennis player. She made her top-ten debut in the WTA rankings towards the end of the 2018 season and has been ranked as high as world No. 8, achieved on 24 October 2022. Kasatkina has won eight singles titles and one title in doubles on the WTA Tour.

Aryna Siarhiejeŭna Sabalenka is a Belarusian professional tennis player. She is the current world No. 1 in singles and former world No. 1 in doubles by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA). Sabalenka has won three major singles titles at the 2023 and 2024 Australian Opens and the 2024 US Open, and two major doubles titles, at the 2019 US Open and the 2021 Australian Open, both partnering with Elise Mertens. She has won 23 career titles, 17 in singles and 6 in doubles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nadezhda Karpova</span> Russian footballer

Nadezhda Alekseyevna Karpova is a Russian footballer who plays as a forward for Spanish Primera División club RCD Espanyol and the Russia women's national team.

This is a list of the main career statistics of professional Belarusian tennis player Aryna Sabalenka. She has won seventeen singles titles and six doubles titles on the WTA Tour. Her most significant titles are the US Open 2024 singles title and back-to-back Australian Open titles in singles, and the 2019 US Open and 2021 Australian Open in doubles, won alongside Elise Mertens. She also has won two WTA 1000 titles in doubles at the Indian Wells Open and Miami Open in 2019. In singles, she has won seven WTA 1000 tournaments at the Wuhan Open in 2018, 2019 and 2024, at the Qatar Open in 2020, at the Madrid Open in 2021 and 2023, and at the Cincinnati Open in 2024.

Natalia Nikolaevna Eismont is a press secretary of Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko.

The 2022 WTA Finals was the professional women's championship tennis tournament run by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) from October 31 to November 7, 2022. It was the 51st edition of the singles event and the 46th edition of the doubles competition. The tournament was held on an indoor hardcourt at the Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas, marking the return of the tournament to the United States after 17 years, and was contested by the eight highest-ranked singles players and doubles teams of the 2022 WTA Tour.

The 2023Australian Open was a Grand Slam level tennis tournament held at Melbourne Park, from 16–29 January 2023. It was the 111th edition of the Australian Open, the 55th in the Open Era, and the first major of the year. The tournament consisted of events for professional players in singles, doubles and mixed doubles. Junior and wheelchair players competed in singles and doubles tournaments. During previous years, the tournament's main sponsor was Kia.

Belarus, a close ally of Russia, has supported its eastern neighbour in the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Before the start of the offensive, Belarus allowed the Russian Armed Forces to perform weeks-long military drills on its territory; however, the Russian troops did not exit the country after they were supposed to finish. Belarus allowed Russia to stage part of the invasion from its territory, giving Russia the shortest possible land route to Ukraine's capital, Kyiv. However, these forces withdrew within two months, thus ceasing land-based military operations originating from Belarus and resulting in the recapture of the Ukrainian side of the border region by Ukraine. Despite this, the situation along the border remains tense, with Ukraine closing the border checkpoints leading into Belarus, bar special cases.

Daria Kaleniuk is a Ukrainian civil society activist who is the executive director of the Anti-Corruption Action Center, based in Kyiv. During the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Kaleniuk came to international media prominence when she asked British prime minister Boris Johnson at a press conference in Warsaw why some London-based Russian oligarchs had not been targeted with sanctions and why he did not support the establishment of a no-fly zone over Ukraine.

The 2022 Iga Świątek tennis season officially began on 3 January 2022 as the start of the 2022 WTA Tour. Iga Świątek entered the season as world number 9. The season saw the Polish player become the twenty-eighth world number 1 player in singles. A 37-match win streak was accumulated during the season, the longest in the twenty-first century.

Aryna Sabalenka defeated Elena Rybakina in the final, 4–6, 6–3, 6–4 to win the women's singles tennis title at the 2023 Australian Open. It was her first major singles title. Sabalenka dropped just one set during the tournament, to Rybakina in the championship match. Rybakina became the first Kazakhstani player to progress past the fourth round, and the first player since Jennifer Capriati in 2001 to defeat three consecutive major champions in a single edition of the Australian Open. By reaching the final, Rybakina made her debut in the top ten of the WTA rankings making her the first player representing Kazakhstan, male or female, ever to reach this milestone.

Events of the year 2022 in Belarus.

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to the Russo-Ukrainian War:

The 2023 French Open was a Grand Slam tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts. It was held at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, from 28 May to 11 June 2023, comprising singles, doubles and mixed doubles play. Junior and wheelchair tournaments were also played. It was the 122nd edition of the French Open and the second Grand Slam event of 2023.

Markéta Vondroušová defeated Ons Jabeur in the final, 6–4, 6–4 to win the ladies' singles tennis title at the 2023 Wimbledon Championships. It was her first major singles title and her first title overall in six years. Vondroušová became the first unseeded female player to win the Wimbledon title, the first to contest the final since Billie Jean King did so in 1963, and at world No. 42 was the lowest-ranked champion and second-lowest-ranked finalist since the WTA rankings were established in 1975. By winning the title, Vondroušová made her debut in the top ten of the WTA rankings.

The 2023 Aryna Sabalenka tennis season officially began on 4 January 2023 with the start of the Adelaide International.

The 2023 Elena Rybakina tennis season officially began on 1 January 2023, with the start of the Adelaide International 1 in Adelaide.

References

1 2 3 "Babai rus dhe një tattoo me shqiponjë – historia e gazetares ukrainase që gjeti strehë në Kosovë" [Russian father and an eagle tattoo – the story of the Ukrainian journalist who found refuge in Kosovo]. nacionale.com (in Albanian). May 2022. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
1 2 3 Meshcheriakova, Daria (25 November 2022). "Ukraine is not dead". sbunker.net. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
↑ "Ukrainian journalist Meshcheriakova: Ukraine is going through the same war as Albanians and Kosovo did". thegeopost.com. 17 July 2022. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
1 2 3 Bellstedt, Klaus (8 June 2023). "Tennisreporterin über Sport und Politik: 'Man hat die Ukrainer satt'" [Tennis reporter on sports and politics: 'You're fed up with the Ukrainians']. taz (in German). Retrieved 11 July 2023.
1 2 3 Shigjeqi, Egzona (30 June 2022). "Ukrainian journalist in Kosovo: I like Albanian music here, I hope Ukraine recognizes Kosovo after liberation from Russia". Telegrafi . Archived from the original on 1 July 2022.
1 2 3 4 5 Makey, Lyudmila (21 February 2023). "Журналістка Дар'я Мещерякова: "Я рада, що в Косові ми змогли бути послами без посольства"" [Journalist Darya Meshcheryakova: 'I am glad that in Kosovo we were able to be ambassadors without an embassy'] (in Ukrainian). Union of Journalists of Ukraine . Retrieved 11 July 2023.
↑ Simons, Bill (2 June 2023). "Controversy Erupts as Sabalenka Cancels Press Conference". Inside Tennis . Retrieved 10 July 2023.
1 2 3 "'It's not on my list to die heroically. So I left the country in early March' – Daria Meshcheriakova, Voices of Ukraine". European Centre for Press and Media Freedom. 16 December 2022. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Futterman, Matthew (2 June 2023). "Sabalenka Skips French Open News Conference Citing Her Mental Health". The New York Times . Retrieved 10 July 2023.
1 2 Meshcheriakova, Daria (24 February 2023). "Year of war: Kyiv after the Russian invasion". sbunker.net. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
1 2 3 ""Хопіць строiць з сябе ахвяру". Ад яе пытанняў пра Лукашэнку і Украіну збегла Сабаленка" ['Stop making yourself a victim'. Sabalenka ran away from her questions about Lukashenko and Ukraine]. by.tribuna.com (in Belarusian). 3 June 2023. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
1 2 Walker, Ali (6 June 2023). "Belarusian tennis ace Sabalenka: 'I don't support Lukashenko right now'". Politico Europe . Retrieved 11 July 2023.
↑ Bouveresse, Rémi (5 June 2023). "Rattrapée par la politique, Aryna Sabalenka ne veut parler que de tennis" [Caught up in politics, Aryna Sabalenka only wants to talk tennis]. La Presse (in French). Agence France-Presse . Retrieved 11 July 2023.
1 2 3 4 Maine, D'Arcy (8 June 2023). "The complicated story of Aryna Sabalenka at the French Open". ESPN . Retrieved 10 July 2023.
1 2 Futterman, Matthew (6 June 2023). "Tension Overshadows the Tennis Between Sabalenka and Svitolina". The New York Times . Retrieved 10 July 2023.
↑ Meshcheriakova, Daria (7 July 2023). "Tennis has a Russia problem". Politico . Retrieved 11 July 2023.