Monte Carlo Finalist Davidovich Fokina Is A Massive Pet Advocate

Tatiana Fokina

Editor's Note: This story was originally published on 12 April.

Alejandro Davidovich Fokina showed plenty about his tennis when he upset Novak Djokovic at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, and after defeating Grigor Dimitrob he will play for his first ATP Tour title on Sunday at the ATP Masters 1000 event. But something that you might not know about the Spaniard is that he loves animals.

Davidovich Fokina last year launched Adoptas.org, a platform that helps facilitate the adoption of pets from Spanish shelters. It also provides information to help people better understand the adoption process.

“[I’ve loved animals] since I was little, even though I was not allowed to have pets as a child because my mom thought they gave me allergies," Davidovich Fokina said last year. "After school, I used to play for hours with a dog that would come up to my door, and I would pet her.

“Whenever I see a stray animal, I go to the store and get something to feed it. And if it’s in bad shape, I call a shelter. Pets are not stuffed toys and they should not be mistreated. I have two cats and they are like my children to me, it would never occur to me to abandon them or mistreat them.” 

The 22-year-old carries his care for animals onto the court, too. If you look at his shirt, Adoptas.org is on his sleeve. The project remains one of Davidovich Fokina's biggest passions.

“Announcing this makes me more nervous than playing tennis,” Davidovich Fokina said around the time of the platform's launch. “I’m doing this out of a love for animals, and because I’m outraged by pet abandonment."