NEW YORK – Jelena Ostapenko apologized on social media on Saturday three days after telling American Taylor Townsend that she had “no class” and “no education” following a second round match at the US Open.
Black Townsend and Latvian native Ostapenko had a fierce exchange after Townsend won in straight sets on Wednesday. After their match, Townsend said Ostapenko had gone on to her without apologizing for the netcode, and then used insulting language and questioned Townsend’s intelligence and personality.
Ostapenko’s words sparked accusations of racism, with Coco Goff and Naomi Osaka among those who publicly defended Townsend. Osaka called Townsend saying that Ostapenko “one of the worst things you can say to a majority of White Sports black tennis players.”
Ostapenko wrote in her Instagram story on Saturday: “I wanted to apologise for what I said in a two-round singles match. English is not my native language. When I said education, I was only talking about what I believe as tennis etiquette, but I understand how I can make many people off the tennis court.
“I am grateful for your support as I continue to learn and grow as a person and tennis player. I look forward to coming back to New York and next year.”
Townsend said she hadn’t noticed an apology when she began a press conference after winning the double on Saturday. She smiled as the reporter read Ostapenko’s post aloud.
“It’s good that she did that. She apologized. I mean, it’s okay. That’s cool,” Townsend said. “At the end of the day, I think it’s a learning lesson for her. Again, like I said when it all first happened, you can’t push your expectations on others. That’s what happened in the end.”
Townsend added:
When asked Wednesday if he thought there was a racial lining in Ostapenko’s comments, Townsend said, “We didn’t take it that way,” but said, “it’s a stigma in our community of ‘uneducated’ and that’s the farthest from the truth.”
Townsend, who has been disrupting No. 5 Seed Mira Andreva on Friday night to reach the US Open Round 16, has received countless messages of support from friends and players, saying he will continue to stand up to her values.
Townsend will play in the fourth round of singles on Sunday.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
