Aryna Sabalenka recently lost her long-time boyfriend, Konstantin Koltsov. The former Belarusian hockey player passed away and shocked the world at the news of his sudden demise. Sabalenka has to sadly live through losing an important male presence in her life. Before the passing of Koltsov, she had to bid farewell to her father, who was one of her strongest pillars of support.
The Belarusian beauty has not shared any message about her boyfriend’s passing so far. However, it is not difficult to imagine that she is suffering through an extremely difficult time and needs the support of her friends and family.
Aryna Sabalenka’s father’s death was a major shocker for her
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
Her father, Sergey, was an ice hockey player and one of the primary reasons Sabalenka began playing tennis. She explained, “One day, my dad was just driving me somewhere in the car, and on the way he saw tennis courts. So he took me to the courts. I really liked it and enjoyed it and that’s how it was. That’s how it started.”
Sabalenka’s father died unexpectedly at the age of 43 in 2019 due to meningitis. The following few years on tour made it tough for her to concentrate on her performance. Her father was also one of the biggest reasons she became a grand slam champion. He wanted to see her become world number one and win a few Grand Slam titles but she passed away before she managed to acclaim the glory.
She took her tennis to the next level and pulled ahead of the competition to win two Australian Open titles. Sabalenka was honoring her late father when she blew a kiss to the sky after defeating Zheng Qinwen in a remarkable performance at the 2024 Australian Open.
The Tiger managed to live with the passing of her father as she managed to become an even stronger player with his memory. However, she has to go through the harrowing process once again as she recently lost her boyfriend.
Sabalenka loses another close male figure in her life
Sabalenka and Koltsov became public about their relationship in 2021. They shared several pictures of each other on their social media pages and also shared pictures of the several trips they took around the world. They were also seen together in the Netflix Docuseries, ‘Break Point,’ where they spent a day with Sabalenka.
Unfortunately, the tennis world has had to listen to the passing of Konstantin Koltsov. It started with several Belarusian news outlets covering his death, and more media outlets poured in to share their confirmation. There was no confirmation from sources close to Saba or Koltsov when his team eventually shared the message.
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
They wrote, “It is with deep sorrow that we inform you that Salavat Yulaev coach Konstantin Koltsov has passed away. He was a strong and cheerful person, he was loved and respected by players, colleagues, and fans. Konstantin Evgenievich forever wrote himself into the history of our club. Koltsov won the Russian Championship and the Gagarin Cup as part of Salavat Yulaev, and did a great job on the team’s coaching staff.”
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
As of this moment, the reason for his passing has not been confirmed. However, Saba will need all the support she can receive from her family to help her mourn. The team of Essentially Sports shares its condolences for the Belarusian Tiger as she faces the harrowing ordeal.