“Abhorrent act” – Martina Navratilova mourns the shock murder of Charlie Kirk as American keeps political differences aside

Martina Navratilova has delivered a scathing take on the unfortunate killing of Charlie Kirk. The Czech-American tennis legend, despite having political differences with the late activist and close Donald Trump ally, condemned the murder and called out the person responsible for the violent act.

On Wednesday, September 10, 31-year-old Kirk was speaking at a campus event at the Utah Valley University when the shooter pulled the trigger. The single gunshot fired struck Kirk in the neck, and chaos ensued. Not long after the incident, President Trump himself confirmed the conservative activist and author’s death.

Former WTA singles and doubles No. 1 and 18-time singles Major champion Martina Navratilova took to X (formerly Twitter) to react to Charlie Kirk’s brazen murder. Navratilova voiced her disapproval of political violence and also bemoaned how common such acts of violence seem to have become.

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"Political violence is never ok. This is an abhorrent act from an abhorrent individual. It is a sad day in many ways as this kind of stuff is way too common….," Navratilova wrote.

Martina Navratilova

@Martina

Political violence is never ok. This is an abhorrent act from an abhorrent individual. It is a sad day in many ways as this kind of stuff is way too common….

It's worth noting that Navratilova is a fierce critic of Trump and the Republicans at large, including the conservative activists who support the President. As things stand, authorities are yet to reveal the identity of the shooter and the motive behind the attack.

Martina Navratilova and President Donald Trump were both in attendance at US Open 2025 men's singles final

On Sunday, September 7, both Martina Navratilova and Donald Trump were at the Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York for the men's singles final of this year's US Open, which was contested by the two top-ranked ATP stars, Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.

Sinner was the defending champion, but the Italian couldn't handle Alcaraz's firepower and incredible variety of shots. Ultimately, the Spaniard registered a 6-2, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 win to win the US Open for the second time. He also became the new World No. 1 in the process.

After sealing his title triumph, a jubilant Alcaraz made his way to his team to celebrate. Here, President Trump was caught on camera with a rather grumpy expression on his face, refusing to clap for the Spaniard.

Later, the video of the moment went viral, to which Martina Navratilova also reacted. According to the 68-year-old, Trump was "jealous" of Alcaraz.

"Never saw trump clap. Not once. He is so jealous!!!," she wrote on X.

However, despite Navratilova's take, Trump himself said after the final that he enjoyed the match.

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Sudipto Pati

Sudipto is a Tennis journalist at Sportskeeda holding a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism and Mass Communication. He has an experience of 3+ years across the market research, travel, health, lifestyle and sports sectors.

Sudipto has followed Tennis since the early 2000s and stays up-to-date with the sport by following both active and former Tennis players, and seasoned journalists. He also follows ATP and WTA updates, watches documentaries and interviews of professionals, and only reads esteemed publications. He sources all information for his articles only from credible publications stays away from unsubstantiated claims. In just a matter of 3 months, he has gained a readership of almost 2 million at Sportskeeda!

Sudipto admires Rafael Nadal for his fiercely competitive on-court nature and his ability to make memorable comebacks after injury layoffs. The Spaniard may be the GOAT for him, but he also respects the accomplishments of Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer.

Beyond Tennis, Sudipto also has an interest in music, football, and video games alongside cooking and traveling.

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