サバレンカ　元恋人の死に「心が張り裂けるよう」

【マイアミＡＦＰ＝時事】女子テニス世界ランキング２位のアリーナ・サバレンカは２０日、元恋人のコンスタンティン・コルツォフ（４２）さんの死に「心が張り裂けるよう」だと話した。サバレンカは、コルツォフさんが命を落とした時点で２人は破局していたと明かしている。（写真は女子テニスのアリーナ・サバレンカ）
　サバレンカは代理人が発表した声明の中で、「コンスタンティンのは死は考えられない悲劇で、もう一緒にいないとはいえ、心が張り裂けるようです。この困難な時期に私のプライバシーと彼の家族のプライバシーを尊重していただきたいです」と述べている。
　米マイアミの地元当局によると、コルツォフさんは１８日未明、同市内にある高級リゾートの一室のバルコニーから飛び降り、命を落とした。メディアの報道によると、サバレンカはコルツォフさんと３年以上交際していた。
　コルツォフさんは北米アイスホッケーリーグ（ＮＨＬ）のピッツバーグ・ペンギンズに２００３年から０６年まで所属し、通算１４４試合でプレーした。ベラルーシ代表としては０２年のソルトレークシティー冬季五輪と１０年のバンクーバー冬季五輪に参加し、世界選手権にも９度出場。２０年に３人の子をもうけた妻と離婚し、その後サバレンカとの交際を始めていた。
　今年の全豪オープンで連覇を果たしたサバレンカは、２２日に行われる自身初戦の２回戦でパウラ・バドサ（スペイン）と対戦する。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2024/03/22-16:51）

World number two Aryna Sabalenka said she was heart-broken by the death of her former boyfriend Konstantin Koltsov in a statement on Wednesday where she revealed they had not been a couple at the time of his death.
Konstantin's death is an unthinkable tragedy, and while we were no longer together, my heart is broken. Please respect my privacy and his family's privacy during this difficult time, Sabalenka said in a statement released by her agent.
Koltsov died on Monday with Miami police saying he had jumped from the balcony of a room in an resort in an apparent suicide.
Koltsov, a former NHL ice hockey player and later coach, was 42-years-old.
He had been in a relationship with Sabalenka for over three years according to media reports.
Two-time Grand Slam winner Sabalenka, 25, is due to play in the second round of the Miami Open on Friday against Spaniard Paula Badosa.
Badosa is a close-friend of Sabalenka's and said the match would be uncomfortable.
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 added.
At the same point playing against her, it's also uncomfortable.
Players on the WTA have expressed their support for the Belarusian, who on Tuesday practised on an outside court and has given no indication of withdrawing from the tournament.
Koltsov's playing career included a stint with the Pittsburgh Penguins in the NHL, where he made 144 appearances between 2003 and 2006.
He also played for Belarus at two Winter Olympic Games -- Salt Lake City in 2002 and Vancouver in 2010 -- as well as nine world championships.
He had three children with his wife Julia, whom he divorced in 2020 before he began a relationship with Sabalenka