Tennis player-turned-soldier Sergiy Stakhovsky: In combat, the difference between life and death is a matter of seconds

"It was a moral obligation, I had to fight." Sergiy Stakhovsky, like many of his countrymen, is a proud Ukrainian.

The former tennis player, who in 2013 at Wimbledon ended Roger Federer's celebrated record streak of 36 consecutive quarterfinals at major tournaments, made the courageous decision to leave his career and family behind to go and fight the Russian invaders.

He has been at the front for two and a half years and recounts the horrors of war in a moving interview with MARCA.

Tell us about your decision to leave tennis and go to fight at the front in February 2022

"I would say it was the hardest decision I have ever had to make, especially considering that I had to leave my children behind. It was a step into the absolute unknown. There was very little preparation. Of course, I knew basically how to handle a gun, but that was it. It's definitely a different life. It's impossible to compare life as a sportsman in peacetime and in wartime in the military.

"But it was a decision I believed in at the time, and I still believe it was the right decision because it wasn't based on what was best for me or what was best for the people around me. It was based on what was right and what was wrong. And what Russia did and what Russia continues to do is very wrong. And I believe that by standing up for my country and helping my people, I'm doing the right thing and that's important to me."

Did you feel it was a moral obligation?

"I did. My parents were in Kyiv when the war started and my first goal was to get there. When I got to Kyiv, my mother took the children and left Ukraine, and I stayed with my brother and my father. They are doctors, so they were working in hospitals and were setting up the field hospitals for the military."

How did your family react to your decision?

"Leaving was very hard. I my youngest son, Alex, ran up to me before I left and asked me where I was going. I told him I was going to get something from the garage. I told him I would be right back. It was hard because I knew he wasn't coming back. At least he got to see me again because there were times when I thought he wasn't going to make it. The kids are slowly getting used to me being away all the time. I'm getting used to the fact that I may never see them again, but that's the way it is."

Do your children understand why their father is gone now?

"Yes, they understand. Now I tell them a little more. At first I didn't want to because I thought it wouldn't do them any good. Now I educate them and explain to them why what I do is so important to me. Of course, they are still children. They don't care what my goal is or what I'm trying to do. They just want to have their father around."

What has it been like being on the front lines?

"Exhausting, I would say. You get used to the fear. You get used to the vibrations of artillery shells. You get used to everything. Sometimes the level of fear is higher than normal, but you still have to be able to operate. When you're in a firefight, you know there's a certain level of risk. But during artillery attacks, you have no way of knowing what's coming for you.

"Normally, if you hear the sound of artillery, it means it's not going to hit you directly and, therefore, you more or less know you'll be safe. When you don't hear it is when you have a problem. It's always a matter of seconds...whether you will live or die. I'm still extremely lucky to be alive. Whether I will be able to live through this war, I don't know. Honestly, I just hope I do. There are so many children who will never see their parents again...it's heartbreaking. It's something everyone should understand."

You were a successful tennis player - did you ever think that hundreds of athletes would leave the sport to go fight?

"We're no longer talking about hundreds of athletes who quit. We're talking about hundreds of them who have already been killed, some of them Olympic athletes, some of them future Olympic athletes. We are talking about tens of thousands of Ukrainian civilians killed. We're talking about Ukrainian athletes preparing for the Olympics in conditions that no one should have to endure.

"We have an Olympic gold medalist in fencing who comes from a city that has been bombed to the ground. It's very hard to get up in the morning and go to training when there's been an attack on your city and you don't know if your friends and family are okay. At that point training becomes completely irrelevant. The fact that our athletes have been able to come here and compete is a superhuman achievement."

You mentioned the fencing team - how important is this Olympics for Ukrainian athletes to show strength and unity in the face of adversity? How important is it for them to make their voices heard?

"Every athlete who is here is really a great victory for Ukraine, because our flag is here, our anthem is here, and the athletes are showing that the country still exists. And to be able to hand out medals is a joy for the army, because we need all the positive news we can get. These athletes are incredible ambassadors for the country and that's very important because I think Europe is forgetting about the war. Nobody thinks anymore. We have to keep reminding everybody that the war is not over, that Russia is still killing us."