Viki might skip Slam for baby
Cincinnati, Aug 17: Victoria Azarenka detailed her custody fight over eight-month-old son Leo in a Twitter-linked note on Thursday, saying she will skip the upcoming US Open because of it unless things change.
The move came six days after a TMZ Sports website report that Azarenka would skip the year’s final Grand Slam event starting August 28 at New York following a split last month with the boy’s father, Billy McKeague.
The report said a judge in Los Angeles, where McKeague filed custody papers, will not allow the boy to leave California until the matter is settled, not expected until October.
Azarenka left open a possibility she might be able to play in the Flushing Meadows fortnight, saying in her message: “My incredible fans and friends, who have supported me throughout my career deserve to know why I may not be able to compete at the US Open this year.”
The 28-year-old from Belarus, ranked 204 after a layoff while pregnant and after her son’s birth, played last month at Wimbledon, reaching the round of 16.
“Shortly after Wimbledon, Leo’s father and I separated and as we work to resolve some of the legal processes, the way things stand now is that the only way I can play in the US Open this year is if I leave Leo behind in California, which I’m not willing to do,” Azarenka wrote.
Azarenka would arrange for child care while she is competing,
Shortly after Wimbledon, Leo’s father and I separated and as we work to resolve some of the legal processes, the way things stand now is that the only way I can play in the US Open this year is if I leave Leo behind in California, which I’m not willing to do. I look forward to hopefully having positive developments soon so that this difficult situation can be resolved and I can get back to competing. No parent should have to decide between their child or their career. — VICTORIA AZARENKA on the court tangle with her estranged partner over their eightmonth-old son
having the baby with her in New York rather than leaving him behind in California. “Balancing child care and a career is not easy for any parent, but it is a challenge I am willing to face and embrace,” Azarenka said.
— AFP