Tennis star Anastasia Potapova has accused a United Airlines flight attendant of humiliating and disrespecting her and her dog during a trip to New York.
The 25 year old, who is the 24th seed for the upcoming US Open, was traveling from Houston to New York on flight UA678 when the incident occurred.
The US Open is the final Grand Slam tournament of the tennis calendar year, held at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center at Flushing Meadows in Queens. It is played on hard courts and is one of the most prestigious events in the sport.
Potapova, currently ranked number 28 in the world, is heading into the women's singles draw at the major event after recently withdrawing from the Monterrey Open in Mexico due to a back injury.
The tennis player shared her anger in a statement posted to her Instagram Story. She claimed that a flight attendant, who she identified as Mary, went out of her way to cause problems without a clear reason.
"I have never done anything like this before, but right now I simply cannot stay silent," Potapova said on her Instagram Story.
"As a professional athlete, I travel extensively all over the world, but this is the first time I have ever experienced this level of disrespect, rudeness, and, to some extent, discrimination."
Airline confrontation
Potapova, who was born in Russia but switched her sporting nationality to Austrian ahead of the new season, alleged that the crew member was extremely rude to her personally and also mistreated her dog. She said the flight attendant repeatedly brought up her status and threatened to throw her off the aircraft.
"To me, flight attendants are supposed to be there to help passengers, not create problems for them," she wrote.
"Today, on my flight from Houston to New York, flight UA678, I encountered a flight attendant who repeatedly seemed to go out of her way to cause problems for me for no apparent reason.
"She was extremely rude both to me personally and in the way she treated my dog. She also repeatedly brought up my status and threatened to remove me from the flight because of it."
"Her name is Mary. I truly hope that your airline will look into this situation and take it seriously, because no passenger, and no animal, deserves to be treated in such a humiliating and disrespectful way, especially by a member of the cabin crew."
Potapova posted a photograph of the flight attendant she was complaining about. She then shared a message from a follower who claimed they had experienced the same problem with the same woman, alleging that the message was one of many she had received about the employee.
She later revealed that she was in conversation with United Airlines, a major American carrier headquartered in Chicago, regarding the incident.
"I really appreciate quick reaction to OUR problem," she added.
Recent tennis success
Potapova is looking to build on her recent performances at the US Open. She reached the second round of the singles draw at Flushing Meadows last year before losing to Mirra Andreeva.
In 2024, she achieved a career best at the tournament by reaching the third round.
Her form this year has included a strong run at Roland Garros, the premier clay court Grand Slam tournament held annually in Paris. She knocked out American Coco Gauff on her way to the fourth round of the French Open.
She also made history at the Madrid Open, a prominent WTA 1000 level tournament in Spain, by becoming the first lucky loser to reach the semifinal stage. A lucky loser is a player who loses in qualifying but enters the main draw due to another player's withdrawal. She eventually lost that match to Marta Kostyuk.
Divorce from Alexander Shevchenko
Off the court, Potapova recently went through a public separation. She was married to fellow tennis professional Alexander Shevchenko, but the pair divorced after the 2024 US Open.
During an interview with Bolshe in 2025, she discussed the split and the difficulty of dealing with public interest in her personal life.
"I made some shockingly big decisions at the end of the year," she said. "But like I mentioned, that's life. Unfortunately, things like that happen and you have to accept it. Of course, I'm very disappointed it all went the way it did."
Despite the end of their marriage, Potapova spoke positively about her former husband.
"I really wish Sasha, I can say it on camera, I'm not ashamed of these words, I really wish him all the best, and he deserves all the best," she said.
"I wish him all the best with his career, as well, because he's very talented and he has to keep working and developing as a player. But I guess we had problems; some couples get over these problems, and some don't. Unfortunately, we were one of the couples that didn't."
Potapova said that the separation required a significant amount of mental resilience. She noted that people both inside and outside the tennis tour were curious about the breakup.
"My team, my close ones, even me, we were all shocked by how mentally strong I could be," she said.
"Every other person came to me and asked, 'So what, you two broke up?' On tour, outside the tour. Of course, it's not really polite, but it's life and people are curious. It's like a TV show for them."
She explained that formalizing the divorce was a necessary step to stop the constant questions and move forward.
"I think I needed to put an end to it, to end things officially, so I wouldn't get those questions anymore. I think that was the last step I needed to finally set myself free."
