Amid the rumoured secret affair between Elena Rybakina and her coach, Stefano Vukov, the latter was subjected to severe physical and mental torture. Read on to know more.
Kazakhstan’s tennis star, Elena Rybakina, is currently leading the headlines for competing in the Australian Open final with Aryna Sabalenka. Elena beat American player Jessica Pegula in the semi-finals to grab a spot at the finale. Elena has been ranked as world No. 3 in women’s singles by the WTA. She is the first Kazakhstani to win a major and to be ranked in the world's top 10. However, beyond her flourishing career, her private life has drawn a lot of attention.
Elena has always believed in keeping her personal life out of the media glare. But in 2024, it was reported that the tennis star was dating her coach, Stefano Vukov. Their relationship soon became a topic of huge discussion in the WTA. Despite a 10-year age difference, rumours of their affair dominated the headlines.
In early 2025, there were reports that Stefano Vukov's behaviour towards Elena garnered a lot of negative publicity. A report by The Athletic indicated that Vukov subjected Rybakina to ‘mental abuse’. The report further stated that Vukov said Elena was ‘stupid’ and claimed she would still be "in Russia picking potatoes" without him.
Elena was abused to the point that she fell sick and missed many tournaments for unusual reasons, such as colds or allergies. Vukov has been coaching Elena since 2019. However, they parted ways just before the 2024 US Open. Throughout his coaching, Elena faced a lot of abuse from him. His coaching methods, which involved pushing the tennis star to her physical limits, took a toll on her health.
Because of his harassment, Elena began missing major matches. She withdrew from the Paris Olympics and the WTA 1000 tournament in Toronto. In 2024, she withdrew from five tournaments, including the Dubai, Indian Wells, Rome, and Berlin Open quarterfinals. Though she quoted physical problems, when in reality she was mentally abused by Stefano Vukov, leading to stress and depression. She wanted to fire Vukov but was threatened by the coach’s blackmail and sexual harassment messages.
In February 2025, the WTA suspended Vukov after a lot of complaints from Elena’s inner circle. The 36-year-old was suspended for one year for violating the tour's code of conduct, citing that the coach created a "toxic relationship" and a "relationship of dependence". In a confidential three-page summary of the investigation, WTA chief executive Portia Archer outlined the 36-year-old coach’s violations of the code of conduct as:
"Engaging in abuse of authority and abusive conduct towards the WTA Player, including compromising or attempting to compromise the psychological, physical or emotional well-being of the Player; engaging in physical and verbal abuse of the Player; and, exploiting your relationship with the Player for further personal and/or business interests at the expense of the best interest of the Player."
Throughout the investigation and suspension, Rybakina publicly defended Vukov, stating that he "never mistreated" her and that she never made any complaints against him. She also expressed her disappointment with WTA's intervention. In August 2025, Vukov’s one-year ban was lifted, and Elena brought her back to her team. Speaking about their relationship and sharing her feelings, Elena said to the media in 2025:
“I never had any issues with him, so for me it's just nice to see him in the box. We obviously have good communication and we never had an issue."
What do you think about Elena Rybakina’s relationship with Stefano Vukov?
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