Sergiy Stakhovsky, a former Ukrainian tennis pro who left his family to battle Russia, said he returned to his homeland because he “would like it to be on a map.”

Stakhovsky and his wife did not inform their three small children where he was going, but he believes they will figure it out.

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“It was not an easy decision. … If I would stay home, I would feel guilt that I didn’t come back. And now that I’m here, I feel guilty that I left them at home,” he spoke to CNN from Kyiv.

In 2013, Stakhovsky defeated Roger Federer at Wimbledon.

“I was born here, my grandparents are buried here. And I would like to have a history to tell to my kids. If I would stay home and Ukraine would fail, then there would be no Ukraine, not even in the history books,” he said.

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Russian President Vladimir Putin‘s “lies would be transformed into history books,” he said. “The modern history of Ukraine would be nonexistent.”

He stated that he has completed basic military training and that “people like me will be the last resort,” but he is also in good health.

When asked if he would be willing to give his life for his nation, he said, “This is a question which I don’t have an answer to. I’m not sure that there is one individual who is ready to tell you now whether he’s ready to sacrifice his life. I want to see my kids, that’s for sure. I want to see my wife. That’s my goal. But at any given moment, nobody knows what’s happening.”

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According to the Kremlin, Vladimir Putin promised his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron on Thursday that the goals of Russia’s action in Ukraine – demilitarisation and neutrality – will be realised in any situation.