"I hope I live to reach 100, I have to survive this frightening situation" - LeonidStanislavskyi, oldest tennis player in Ukraine
Leonid Stanislavskyi, who holds a Guinness World Record for being the world's oldest tennis player at 97, is currently staying put in Ukraine during Russia's invasion of the country.
Stanislavskyi started playing tennis at 30 and continues to compete to date. While he had big dreams for his tennis career, the 97-year-old's focus has now shifted to surviving the second major war of his lifetime.
"I hope I live to reach 100. I have to survive this frightening situation," he said during a chat with Reuters. "The war started on (February) 24th. From the 24th till now I have practically not gone out. I've stayed at home... I have supplies, the fridge is full. I'm sitting at home, not going anywhere," he said.
While Stanislavskyi has the option of fleeing the country, he has chosen to stay in Ukraine despite the increasingly tense situation.
"My daughter Tanya is in Poland, she wants to take me there. But I decided to stay here. I have bad hearing so I sleep at night and don't hear anything. Last night there were bombings, in the morning there were air-raid sirens again," said Stanislavskyi.
In October 2021, Leonid Stanislavskyi played against Rafael Nadal at the Spaniard's academy, fulfilling one of his biggest dreams. The 97-year-old also hopes to spar with Roger Federer some day.
The Ukrainian, who has been playing tennis for more than 60 years, currently competes in the 90 years category of the ITF Super Senior World Championships.
Leonid Stanislavskyi worked as an engineer in WW2
Leonid Stanislavskyi saw a major war during his lifetime - he was an engineer who helped in the design and manufacture of Soviet warplanes in the Second World War. Hesaids he never expected to see another war in his lifetime:
"I never thought that I would have to live through another, more frightening war where people from both sides are dying -- mothers are losing their children, wives are losing their sons and their husbands.What is this? What good is it? In the 21st century there can't be war. The war needs to be stopped, an agreement has to be reached," Stanislavskyi said
While Leonid Stanislavskyi is in a frightening situation right now, the oldest tennis player in the world has not given up hope. He wishes to compete soon, but will not leave Ukraine until the war is over.
"Tennis is my life, my destiny," he said. "I've played tennis at a serious level since I was 90, I've played abroad, I've played in World Championships, I've played in the European Championships. I'm not afraid of anyone... I'm hoping that the war will end and I will be able to play tennis. If I could get (to Poland) I would play there. But I decided to stay at home and wait for the end of the war," he said.