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Women's Tennis
vs ITA All-American Championships
University of Oklahoma Athletics
Strong for Sasha
October 02, 2020 | Women's Tennis
I want to share my story with you. My name is Oleksandra Korashvili, my friends call me Sasha, and I am a tennis player and student-athlete at the University of Oklahoma. This May, I completed my undergraduate studies and entered graduate school at OU. During summer break, I came back home to Ukraine.
During practices I would rapidly feel fatigued. My heart rate was unusually quick while my recovery time was extremely slow. At first, I thought I had lost my physical conditioning given the fact we all were stuck at home during quarantine. After finishing one of the workouts, my heart rate did not drop below 120 beats per minute for an hour. I thought this was related to the harsh weather conditions that day - it was very hot and humid.
An All-Big 12 Selection, the 2019 Big 12 Newcomer of the Year and an NCAA qualifier, Oleskandra "Sasha" Korashvili hopes to return to tennis as she battles Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS) with Myelofibrosis.
A week after that, on August 8th, I got sick. I had symptoms such as headaches, shortness of breath, fatigue, loss of appetite, weight loss (12lbs) and fever that could go up to 103 degrees.
After long examination and countless tests I was diagnosed with Myelodysplastic Syndrome with Myelofibrosis. My doctor said that Bone Marrow Transplant (BMT) is needed to cure these diseases. At the moment, I am at the stage when I can immediately undergo BMT without remission chemotherapy.
I would love to return to full recovery and show by example that a person is capable of anything! I am only 24 years old and I want to get back to continuing living my life in full swing.
My family and I need to raise $127,000 in two weeks to start the BMT process.
Anything helps; I long to fulfill my dream of becoming a professional tennis player one day. I would love to return to full recovery and show by example that a person is capable of anything!
Outside of sport, I dream of one day starting my own family and make my loved ones happy every day. I am only 24 years old and I want to get back to continuing living my life in full swing.
I've been approved by OU Compliance to set up a GoFundMe account. Due to compatibility problems with GoFundMe and my current home country (Ukraine) and the location of medical care (Turkey), I am working alongside my Director of Operations from the University of Oklahoma to help with donations using an American Bank to help with medical bills.
I want to thank everyone who has not remained indifferent in my fight. Thank you for all your messages and warm words of support. I appreciate everything you do for me. I cannot answer to each of you personally but I feel your incredible support!
Players Mentioned
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