How does a Ukrainian tennis powerhouse end up running an oyster bar in Wimbledon?
Plus: Labour retain control of Merton
Good morning, Wimblers.
This week, The Wimble spoke with Evgeniy Zukin. Evgeniy and his family moved to south London at the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Some of our readers might remember Evgeniy from our piece early last year focusing on the launch of his Wimbledon restaurant, Oy Bar. But this week, I sat down with Evgeniy to talk about tennis and how he wound up running the Ukrainian Tennis Federation from SW19.
We’ve also got a breakdown of last week’s local election in Merton. Check out our news snippets to see how the council has shaped up after your votes.
Happy reading!
News snippets 🗞️
🎉 It’s official: The Wimble is launching another summer print edition! This will be our third print edition in 18 months, and we couldn’t be more excited. Look out over the next few weeks for updates and info about where to grab your copy and what to expect.
🗳️ Labour has secured another four years in control of Merton Council. The party returned 32 councillors across the authority’s 57 seats (a small gain on 2022’s results). The Liberal Democrats — who made a concerted effort in this year’s election to unseat Labour — won 19 seats (also an improvement on 2022’s results). The Conservatives retained their foothold in Wimbledon Village but lost three councillors elsewhere in the borough (notably Nick McLean, who was defeated by the Liberal Democrats in Cannon Hill). Stephen Alambritis, former leader of Labour-run Merton Council, said, “This is about local issues, this is all about the street on your road. I think if you make that differentiation, people will think and not want to gamble it all away.”
Councillors Anthony Fairclough, leader of the Merton Liberal Democrats, said, “These results show that more and more residents across the borough are putting their trust in the Liberal Democrats to stand up for them and focus on the issues that matter most locally.”
The voter turnout was 45.15 per cent (up 40 per cent from 2022). The election also saw a record number of candidates (271) standing for election across all 20 of Merton’s wards. Read more here and click here to see the full breakdown of votes.
👩🌾 On Tuesday, Wimbledon Quarter hosted the Taste of the Rooftop Farm spring event. It was a sold-out evening full of conversation, samples and talks from special guests Vanessa Marx (Bingham Riverhouse) and Toby Cartwright (Black Radish). If you missed this event and would like to attend the next one, check out the Quarter’s page here for the next tour on Saturday 30 May.
Property of the week 🏠
This five-bedroom house is undeniably beautiful (though I’d probably get rid of the flower wallpaper in the reception room). It comes with three bathrooms, four reception rooms, a garden and a cellar. This place really doesn’t skimp on the space. But at £2.5m, you’d hope they wouldn’t! Check out more pictures here.
The Wimble’s to-do list 🎯
🎶 Merton Singfest: This event, organised by Wimbledon Choral in partnership with Merton Music Foundation, involves everyone from schoolchildren and young people to adults and seniors within the borough, celebrating the rich diversity of choirs in Merton. Each of the 15 participating choirs will have 15 minutes to sing their chosen music. Entry is free, though attendees are encouraged to purchase refreshments and cakes to help pay for the event! Check out more info here.
Where: St Mark’s Church, SW19 7ND
When: Saturday 16 May, 10am – 5.30pm
🥳 Family activity day: Spend a day enjoying Cannizaro Park’s pond with water conservation experts from the South East Rivers Trust. There will be lots of pond-habitat-focused activities for all of the family to enjoy. This event is free, though booking is required for the three pond dipping sessions that day (click here).
Where: Cannizaro Park
When: Sunday 17 May, 11am – 4pm
🍻 Pub quiz at The Hand in Hand: Gather your smartest friends, grab a couple of beers and compete in one of Wimbledon’s most competitive pub quizzes. I’ve been out of the pub quiz circuit for quite some time now, but last week I donned my quiz cap and tried one in the city. Let’s put it this way: I’m not half as good as I remember.
Where: Hand in Hand
When: Tuesday 19 May, 8–10pm
🥂 Grower Champagne Tasting: Growers are increasingly focusing on making their own Champagne rather than supplying their grapes to Grande Marques. With a focus on terroir and individuality, they’re producing some stunning wines, often in tiny amounts. Tickets are £50 per person and include a guided tasting of five different Champagnes.
Where: Amathus, Wimbledon Village
When: Thursday 21 May, 6.30–8pm
🎼 St John May Lunchtime Recital: This event is one of a series of lunchtime recitals held on the fourth Friday of each month, featuring local and international professional musicians. This month will feature Jane Faulkner (violin) and Gary Peacock (piano). These events are free but donations are strongly encouraged.
Where: St John the Baptist
When: Friday 22 May, 1pm
How does the CEO of the Ukrainian Tennis Federation end up running an oyster bar in Wimbledon? 🦪
It’s a bright spring morning. I’m sitting with Evgeniy Zukin in his Wimbledon restaurant, Oy Bar. I first met Evgeniy about a year and a half ago, right after Evgeniy opened the restaurant. I’d visited then to talk about the food. What I learnt on that occasion was Evgeniy’s backstory: his meteoric rise in the world of Ukrainian tennis, his experience of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and how his family wound up running an oyster restaurant in SW19. The interview last year was short and oyster-heavy. But I made a promise to myself to come back for the full story. So here I am. And all I can think to say is: “Where did it all start?”
Evgeniy Zukin was just seven years old when his mother introduced him to tennis. Very quickly, the sport became his life. Playing in Kyiv’s Republican Stadium (renamed the Olimpiyskiy National Sports Complex), Evgeniy proved himself from a young age, ranking in Ukraine’s top 10 players under 12. But by 14, Evgeniy and his family began to struggle with the financial burden of nurturing a young athlete. “I realised that without a bigger financial investment, my career as a player wasn’t going to reach the heights that I wanted. So I pivoted and started my master’s degree when I was only 16 years old.” Evgeniy packed his bags and spent five years studying physical rehabilitation at the National University of Ukraine on Physical Education and Sport (potentially the longest name for a university that I’ve ever heard). But he couldn’t stay away from tennis for long. By 18, Evgeniy was back on the court as a hitting partner and coach.
“It was also around this time that I got my certification as a chair umpire. I was 19, which meant I was the youngest person in the entirety of the post-Soviet states. I know this might not sound like a lot, but it was a huge deal for us in Ukraine. This was in 2003, and I was the second person in Ukraine at the time to get this qualification from the International Tennis Federation (ITF).”
So where did life take him next? Evgeniy spent the following ten years travelling the world and umpiring tournaments as big as the Davis Cup. During his stint as a tennis official, in 2009, Evgeniy and a friend launched the only print magazine for tennis in Ukraine. They kept the name simple: Tennis Club. “There had been a magazine before, but when the financial crash hit in 2008, it shut down. But our magazine was a grassroots project – the budget was small. Tennis clubs across the country would kindly lend us their rooms to work in. The designer would come in at night after his day job. And all the while, I was still working internationally as an ITF-certified official.”
In 2013, the Ukrainian Tennis Federation (UTF) called and asked if he’d like to be their CEO. “The rhythm of my life completely changed when I joined the Ukrainian Tennis Federation. I had been on the move for the entirety of my adult life. For the first time, I was being asked to work from an office. But it was a job I really wanted to do. In my first two years, we tripled the number of international tournaments, concentrated on rising junior talent by investing in them, and kept our eye on the grassroots of Ukrainian tennis.” From 2013 to the outbreak of the war, Evgeniy and his team fought tirelessly to put Ukrainian tennis on the map, both nationally and internationally. And they did.
But in February 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine and started the largest and deadliest war in Europe since WWII. At the time, Evgeniy was gearing up to host Ukraine vs Barbados in Kyiv for the Davis Cup play-offs.
“Do you remember when all of the embassies started to evacuate their staff?” Evgeniy asks.
I nod.
“Around this time, the ITF Davis Cup committee scheduled a meeting to discuss the challenges in organising the title. As a member of the committee, I proposed to organise the tie on neutral ground due to the significant security threats posed by hosting it in Kyiv. I had experience with this: when Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, we were forced to host matches in Estonia because that was ‘neutral ground’. So, with the full-scale invasion, I spoke with the rest of the Davis Cup committee and told them I would host the match against Barbados in Turkey.”
Evgeniy, his wife, Vladyslava, and their two children packed three suitcases and flew to Turkey to find a suitable venue for the match within three weeks. By the time Evgeniy and his family made it to Turkey, the war had already begun. I ask Evgeniy if he had any urge to go back to Ukraine at the time. “No, the risk was too high. I had my family with me and thankfully we were safe.”
Surprisingly, the tie against Barbados went ahead. Ukraine won. There was little time to celebrate. Immediately, Evgeniy was flown to Portugal, where he met with the ITF and made a few statements to the press regarding the war and the next steps for the Ukrainian national team. But what were his next steps? “We knew we couldn’t go back to Ukraine,” says Evgeniy. “Our national tennis club in Ukraine – the one that my wife and I set up – had been destroyed by Russian artillery. So we looked for somewhere in Europe, and that’s when an old friend of mine from the ITF gave me a call and invited me and my family to stay at his house in Tooting. The anniversary of us moving here will be at the end of the month.”
They stayed in Tooting before finding a house in Colliers Wood, which is where Evgeniy’s family live now. I ask Evgeniy what that time was like and how the idea for an oyster restaurant came to him amidst all that chaos. “I didn’t know what was going to happen with my job at the Ukrainian Tennis Federation. As it turns out, the president asked me to stay on in my role and I’ve worked from here ever since (I still do that full time every day). But at the same time, we needed to integrate here. And it felt like starting a small restaurant was the best way to do that. I put everything I loved into this menu and wine list, and it makes me happy to see when our customers are happy.”
Evgeniy and Vladyslava are hands-on owners. They both do shifts at the restaurant when needed, and they play an active part in Oy Bar’s day-to-day direction. Evgeniy tells me that the restaurant – as well as his and his wife’s membership at Spencer Lawn Tennis Club – has been a great way to meet local people and integrate into the community. I ask him if he finds it strange that of all places to wind up, he winds up in one of the world’s most famous tennis locations. “Probably the most famous tennis location,” he interjects. “I first came to Wimbledon in 2014 with the UTF to look after Ukrainian players and meet with the other federations. I never imagined then that I’d be back here less than 10 years later, living down the road and running a restaurant!”
Are you happy here? “We have our close friends now,” says Evgeniy. “That community has really helped us, and we’re very grateful to everyone who welcomed us so nicely back in 2022. We’re very happy here. And with the Oy Bar, we feel as if we’re giving back a little. It’s not a business that brings in a lot of money, if I’m being honest. But it does enable us to give something back.”
Oy Bar is located at 66 The Broadway. Check out their Instagram here.
Question of the week 🔍
Last week, I presented you with a list of famous singers and asked which one was born in Wimbledon. The answer: Quincy Jones III.
Q: How many kilos of strawberries are consumed at the tennis each year?
You’re up to date 👋
Thank you for reading this week’s edition. I hope you enjoyed Evgeniy’s story. We’ll also be featuring a similar version of that article in our forthcoming summer print edition, so keep your eyes peeled for that. Have a great rest of the week and we’ll see you next Thursday.