Daria Kasatkina, a Russian tennis player, announced her switch to represent Australia due to her identity as an openly gay woman and disapproval of the Russian government’s stance on LGBTQ+ rights and the war in Ukraine. After gaining permanent residency in Australia, she expressed her limited options given the country's increasing crackdowns on LGBTQ+ individuals and dissenting voices. Kasatkina shared her sentiments on this significant life change, describing her emotional experience and her desire to embrace her new identity as an Australian player, all while reflecting on the difficulties faced by LGBTQ+ people in Russia.
"With everything going on in my previous country, I didn't have much choice [to switch allegiance]," Kasatkina told journalists before her campaign at the Charleston Open.
"For me, being openly gay, if I want to be myself, I have to make this step, and I did it."
In recent years, Russia has increasingly cracked down on LGBTQ+ rights, leading to severe repercussions for those expressing dissent.
"I have to get used to it a little bit, because for a couple of years I didn't hear anything. But it's something nice to get used to."
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