Victoria Azarenka Family Story Growing Up And How It Shaped Her Today

Publish date: 2024-05-18

Victoria Azarenka was born to a Belarusian family from Minsk on 31st July 1989. Azarenka parents are Alla Azarenka and Fedor Azarenka.

Azarenka and her ex-boyfriend Billy McKeague engaged in a custody dispute for their son Leo in 2017. Luckily after a year-long legal battle, she was awarded primary guardianship of her little boy.

The 33-year-old tennis phenom began playing tennis at a young age and gradually rose to the world's top in 2012. She has altogether 21 WTA singles titles so far.

Azarenka reached the semi-final of the 2023 Australian Open following her win over Jessica Pegula on January 24. Her eyes are set on winning the third Gland Slam of her career.

She will have to go through Elena Rybakina in the semi-finals.

Victoria Azarenka Has A Son Named Leo

Victoria Azarenka son Leo was born on 19 December 2019. Azarenka and her former partner Billy were happy to welcome their first baby.

However, a few times after, things did not work out between them, and the two eventually broke up. Following the rift, the former couple became entangled in a lawsuit over custody of their son.

The legal battle was highly publicized and took place in California, USA. The procedure was complicated for Azarenka emotionally and professionally, but the former world no 1 was able to come out victorious in the end.

Shortly after the 2017 Wimbledon, Azarenka and McKeague parted ways. McKeague reportedly filed a case in Los Angeles to win the ownership of Leo.

Even though it had been difficult, she was unwilling to lose custody of her child easily.

In early 2018, the LA county Supreme Court judge made a statement to move the case to Belarus. She then gained the upper hand on McKeague and ultimately won the battle.

Since then, Azarenka has been a single mother and balancing her career as a professional tennis player with raising Leo. She has spoken publicly about the daunting ness of balancing motherhood and her profession.

Besides, Leo Azarenka is active in sports and is a junior soccer player. His Instagram with over 10K followers, has glimpses of him playing football wearing a PSG jersey.

Victoria Azarenka Baby Father Billy McKeague

Billy is the son of the Chase and Company chairperson Chase McKeague. He was born and raised in the Greater St. Loius region.

Despite being born into a business family, McKeague was interested in sports and was pretty good at it from childhood.

He desired to play in the National Hockey League (NHL) since he grew up playing ice hockey, and that was imprinted in his head.

However, everything changed once he stepped foot at the University of Missouri. After enrolling, McKeague suddenly changed his heart and found his genuine passion for golf.

After graduating from college, Leo's father moved to Hawaii, where he worked as a golf trainer at the North Shores Resorts. He met Victoria while he was there. Billy has a Facebook account with 1.1K friends.

Victoria Azarenka Relationships

Azarenka was engaged to her former boyfriend Billy in 2017 but was never married to him. She refers to Billy as her husband that never was.

The tennis prodigy has dated a handful of men, but her relationship with the golf instructor was the farthest she ever reached in terms of getting tied. The former pair first met via a mutual friend.

The duo welcomed a son Leo in 2016, and everything worked out for them until the 2017 Wimbledon.

Afterward, the two were arch adversaries, arguing over disagreements, breakups, and legal problems.

Before dating McKeague, the Belarusian athlete has been in a few relationships.

From 2011 to 2012, Azarenka was with the former tennis professional from Ukraine, Sergei Bubka Jr. He is the son of a retired Ukrainian Olympic gold medalist pole vaulter, Sergei Bubka.

In 2013, Azarenka was seen with another man during her U.S. Open tournaments. He was an American musician and rapper Stefan Gordy, who goes by the stage name Redfoo. He was spotted a few times during her games in the stand. However, the two announced their amicable split in 2014.

Then in 2019, the Minsk native was highly criticized because of her rumored link to then-20-year-old tennis prospect Humberto Lobo Guerra, Essentially Sports reported.

Azarenka Parents Raised Her In Minsk

Victoria Azarenka father Foder Azarenka and mother Alla Azarenka brought her up in Minsk, Belarus. She has a brother named Max.

Support from her loved ones was crucial to her success. Her first coach was Alla who had a history in athletics and had been a gymnast. When she was a young girl, Alla would go with her to competitions.

Likewise, her businessman dad Fedor, a former athlete, assisted in funding her early career.

From an early age, Alla and Foder encouraged her to follow her passion for tennis and helped her develop her talents.

Mark, his older brother is 33 years of age.

Other than that, the four-man Azarenka household is a huge Christian devotee. They celebrate each festival with a grand celebration and Christmas is the pure carnival.

Victoria Azarenka Background

Azarenka had a companion of her brother Mark Azarenka while growing up in the Belarusian capital.

Azarenka experienced the difficulties of raising in a nation undergoing a political and economic transformation.

When she was 15, concerning the country's instability and lack of a future in sports, Alla sent her daughter to the US, where she initially lived in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Her mom, with the support of her friend's husband Nikolai Khabibulin, the former NHL player, helped her move to the United States.

The 33-year-old has developed into one of the most successful and well-known tennis players of her time thanks to the backing of her parents as well as her perseverance and commitment.

She has achieved several Grand Slam victories, attained the top in world rankings, and earned an Olympic medal. Her experience shows how support from home can mold and motivate a person to pursue their goals, especially in trying situations.