By Richard Pagliaro | Monday, October 19, 2026
Photo credit: GEMS Life Instagram
Emotional anxiety over the ongoing war in Ukraine played a part in ending the marriage of Elina Svitolina and Gael Monfils.
The 32-year-old Svitolina announced the end of her five-year marriage to Monfils in an Instagram post today. The break-up ends the love story of one of tennis’ most popular and beloved couples.
“Gaël has loved me through my greatest joys and my darkest moments, and I have loved him with all my heart,” Svitolina posted on Instagram. “Together, we built a beautiful life, and we were given the most precious gift of all, our daughter, Skai.
“Skai will always come first. Our marriage is ending, but our family is not. We will always be her parents, side by side, at every step of her life.”
The announcement comes after the ITIA confirmed the 40-year-old Monfils officially retired from pro tennis on October 5th. Monfils had been scheduled to play both Lyon and the Rolex Paris Masters, but instead officially retired earlier this month while coping with the dissolution of his marriage.
Svitolina and Monfils were together as a couple for about seven years. The pair got engaged on April 3rd, 2021 and wed in a lavender-colored wedding ceremony on July 16th, 2021. Svitolina gave birth to the couple’s daughter, Skai, on October 15th, 2022.
In her Instagram post, Svitolina cited the severe emotional and mental stress she’s endured in recent years as her native Ukraine remains under attack from Russia, which attacked its neighboring nation in February of 2022. Svitolina, who has returned to Ukraine and conducted fundraisers to aid the people of her homeland, pulled the plug on her 2025 season in October to take a mental health break.
Svitolina suggests the couple’s relationship was a casualty of the devastating war.
“Everyone knows how much Ukraine means to me. What I have rarely spoken about is what the war has done to me inside,” Svitolina said. “Last year, I told you I needed to step away from the court because I wasn’t in the right emotional space. Today, I want to open up a little more. What you didn’t see were the sleepless nights, the doubts, and the feeling of slowly losing myself.
“Gaël saw all of it. He never let go of my hand. We fought through this together for a long time, with everything we had. But some battles happen deep inside you, and no amount of love from someone else can win them for you.”
Former world No. 3 Svitolina said Monfils has been a supportive and loving partner, but their love story has come to an end.
“With time, I came to understand that I need to find my way back to myself and that I cannot do that within our marriage,” Svitolina said. “It is the hardest truth I have ever had to face and the hardest thing I have ever had to tell the person I love. Gaël listened. He has respected what I need with a strength and grace I will never forget.”
Svitolina commemorated Monfils’ Roland Garros farewell with a poignant tribute in The Players’ Tribune in which she shared memories of her partner in a letter written to their daughter.
“The first thing you should know, I think, it’s that Gaël Monfils was one of the greatest shot-makers anyone has ever seen. There are others who were more consistent, or who made fewer mistakes,” Svitolina wrote. “But it’s interesting. Because when you say why these players are great, maybe you are needing to give a long explanation. Or you are needing to show many statistics, or a whole match, or a whole tournament. But with your dad? It’s not like this. With your dad, it’s so simple. You can show someone a single point of his, even a single shot … and now they will “get it.”
“Because your dad, in just one shot, one moment, he could achieve what I think few athletes ever achieve. He could make people feel something. Almost like at a concert and there’s a perfect song, or at the movies and there’s a perfect line, and you have this feeling like, Oh my god. WOW. It takes your breath away. I wouldn’t say that sports are usually like this.…. they are competition, you know? But if you watch Gaël play, there are moments where you connect to something deeper than sports. Where you feel like, OK, tennis…… this is not just one player trying to grind another player to dust. When it’s in the very best moments??? It’s also magic.
“And your dad was the best magician.”
Ultimately, Svitolina said the couple’s love story is now “changing shape.”
“Please know that there is no one to blame here. There are only two people who loved each other deeply and a story that is changing shape,” Svitolina posted. “We ask for your kindness and for the space we need to heal. Thank you for your love.”
I am sorry to hear this. I believe they are both kind & loving people who both love & care about each other & their child. And who knows, perhaps things will work out & they will someday get back together as a married couple.
So you leave a wonderful man you supposedly love, the father of your child, who has supported you for years, because of the Ukrainian war? Absolutely pathetic. Get therapy. I wish him nothing but the best. He deserves it.
This story is heartbreaking, but totally understandable. Her take on Gael’s game is so beautiful and so correct. They will both be missed from the court.
I am so sorry to hear of your breakup. To me your union symbolized what love is about, but one never knows what individuals are dealing with. I hope the best for both of you but I do hope that you find your way back. Stay well, both of you!
I don’t understand why they have to divorce if they still love each other. Wouldn’t separation make more sense?
I don’t understand why they head for divorce right away if they still love each other. Wouldn’t separation make more sense?
You getting a divorce isn’t going to help end the war. I just don’t understand, let him help you through your anxiety and fear even if it’s as a silent partner by your side, not a sidelined partner. Your baby girl needs her Dad…….and Mom. Don’t act out on emotion just take a breath please.💔
This makes absolutely no sense to me! You love him with all your heart?…. Yet you are getting a divorce… because of the war in Ukraine??? Doubt it! I think you need to put the words “used to” in your statement.
I think it’s difficult enough to endure the life of a tennis pro, much less have to worry about a personal and private life outside of the professional career. Unfortunatley, in the public society that everyone seems to endure, or participate in, cuples and individuals are exposed.
What they do with their personal life is their business and not yours, aprroving or not so let them be private and enjoy their skills in their professioanl life. Just a thought…
For me, in a normal relationship, saying “I love him, but I left him” seems difficult to understand without knowing the circumstances. There must be a reason behind the decision, but what that reason is, and who initiated the divorce, remains personal unless a third party is directly involved or affected.
“It’s a sad story, but for me, saying ‘I love him, but I left him’ is hard to understand without knowing the real reason behind it. Love and leaving seem contradictory, but sometimes there are circumstances we don’t know about.” RESPECT!
When you marry, it’s taking that person for all they are and all they aren’t, for all they have and all they don’t have. Sickness & health, better or worse, etc. You buy in to it all. It’s difficult to understand as an outsider to hear “I love him with all my heart and I’m leaving him.” You two have been 2 of my favorite players and I’m sorry this is happening to your love story. If there are other underlying reasons aside from the war in Ukraine, I hope the two of you can find a way to love each other through it, reconcile if necessary and reconnect your marriage. It’s easy to walk away. Real love is worth fighting for because it is a rarity, a blessing and worth fighting to keep. But again, I only know what I’ve read. God bless you both and Sakai.
It looks like you use Gael as your “tour husband”.
My heart bleeds for what Ukraine and its people, including, Elina, are experiencing. I can’t even imagine the horror. I just wonder if it wouldn’t be easier on her to bear the burden of her home country if she has a caring and supportive partner and family structure away from the turmoil, where she can try to find periodic respite, rather than going it alone. But maybe her PTSD is so severe she feels she needs to heal alone. I can’t imagine the stress and anguish she’s experiencing about the ravaging of her home country. I wish the best for her, her daughter and Gael. Who knows, maybe one day they can find their way back to each other, if that’s what they both want.
Bottom line, but somewhat contrite, getting married is a lot easier than staying married.