Twins set sights on team goals despite trouble at home

Macedonian tennis players remain focused on the court in face of trouble in homeland

Bill Bunting

dm sports editor

Going away to college is a tough task for most students, but coming thousands of miles away across an ocean to a new country makes the situation even more difficult.

For Ivona and Irena Mihailova, twin sisters on the Ole Miss women's tennis team, the difficult situation just became more of an ordeal.

The Mihailova sisters hail from the relatively new country of Macedonia, situated on the southern border of the province of Kosovo, which has been wracked with bombing from NATO forces in recent weeks. The fighting that has gone on in the former Yugoslavian province has affected the people in the Mihailova's native home, and there is little they can do about it, they said.

"It's really tough to have something happening over there with all of those people dying and the threat of war spreading to neighboring countries like Macedonian," said Ivona Mihailova, the elder of the two sisters by 10 minutes. "You never know what could happen since we have a significant Albanian population in Macedonia.

"I hope Macedonia doesn't get involved because it's been the center of attention and a key country because there are so many people from other backgrounds there," Ivona said. "The danger is if the Albanian population decides to try to help out the ones in Kosovo."

The sisters first heard about the troubles brewing in Macedonia -- and specifically the rioting in front of the U. S. embassy in their home city of Skopje -- on the news the night before a critical match against No. 7 William & Mary.

"The night before the match we turned on the TV and saw cars burning and we were so worried," Ivona said. "Coach told us we couldn't watch the news anymore, but he would and let us know if anything happened we needed to worry about."

Irena added that it was difficult to see familiar sights in chaos on the television.

"When we went to play William & Mary it was very hard," Irena said. "It was hard because we grew up there and we had to hear about all of the things happening there. We just try to stay focused on the tennis right now. Tennis is great because it keeps us away from the worrying."

The sisters keep in touch with their parents on a daily basis, but keep tennis in their minds as one of their primary focuses.

"On the days we have matches we try not to watch the news and get distracted," Ivona said. "We just try to do the normal thing every day."

Irena added that with a match against No. 1 Florida looming, it could be costly to lose their focus.

"We're trying to get ready," Irena said. "We can't afford to worry about other things because we're in the middle of our season.

"The girls on the team have been really supportive," Irena said. "Mariana (Eberle) and Celeste (Frey) are always following what's going on. It's great to have friends like that and there have been so many people who have come up to us and asked us if everything is OK."

The hardest part for the sisters to deal with is the possibility they may not get to go home this summer, which would mean another year away from their homeland, they are only able to visit once a year.

"If it's like this or worse, we won't be able to go home," Ivona said.

Either way, the sisters are hopeful that a resolution will be reached soon, though the opinions differ somewhat.

Irena hopes for a quick and easy solution to the fighting that is going on.

"I'm just waiting for the bombing to stop," Irena said. "Someone will eventually have to sign an agreement. I hope that everything stops and it gets quiet soon."

Ivona appreciates the efforts being made, but recognizes that the issue is an extremely difficult one to solve.

"I don't think the U.S. politically understands what all is involved," Ivona said. "They're trying their best to resolve the conflict, but there is so much history involved you don't just sit down and sign an agreement, it's not that simple."