'Almost a stranger': Genie Bouchard's sister spills on sad split
Beatrice Bouchard has opened up on her relationship with twin sister Eugenie, saying the tennis star is “almost a stranger” to her.
Eugenie and Beatrice grew up apart after their parents split when they were just 10.
After the split Eugenie stayed with mother Julie while Beatrice lived with their father Michel.
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Speaking about how the split affected her relationship with twin Eugenie, Beatrice said she barely sees her sister and doesn’t really know her.
“It's very funny. I know someone in the grocery store better than my twin sister,” the 26-year-old admitted.
“We are definitely not a simple, happy, perfect family.
“Even anything but that. Our parents got divorced, they weren't happy with each other.
“Genie was with my mother for most of her life from then on.
“Myself, our siblings Charlotte and William with my father. So we grew up separately.”
Beatrice said her parents’ marriage breakdown caused enormous strain on the family.
“The situation caused enormous tension,” she added.
“Especially between me, Charlotte, Will and my mother, as well as between Genie and our father.
“It's still like this today, not at all perfect. I've only seen her twice a year since we were 10 years old.
“Therefore, people in the supermarket are closer to her than her own twin sister. It’s crazy. She is almost a stranger to me.”
Beatrice said she’s always been asked why she doesn’t follow her sister on the tennis tour and is barely ever seen supporting her at matches.
“A, I went to school! And I have a life to live too,” she said.
“And B, who should have paid for that? Genie didn't pay for it. And that's a perfect example.
“People probably think: go with your sister, she will take you everywhere.
“No, my sister didn't take me anywhere.
“And when I wanted to see her play at Wimbledon, she said: Okay, come and see me play, buy your ticket and come.”
Eugenie Bouchard’s fall from grace
Bouchard is one of the most-criticised players in tennis, with fans and trolls constantly pointing to her social media activity as to why she’s suffered such a dramatic decline.
The former World No.5 and Wimbledon finalist has plummeted down the rankings in recent years, currently sitting at 141.
On Tuesday she lost in the second round of qualifying for the Australian Open and won’t be playing at the tournament where she burst onto the scene in 2014.
Many point to her social media activity as a reason why she hasn’t been performing on the court, but Bouchard says that’s far from the truth.
The trolling got so bad that Bouchard recently admitted she’s stopped posting bikini photos online because of the backlash.
“I just don’t value the opinions of people who are out there just judging what I put out there,” Bouchard said in an interview with tennis.com recently.
“And I really try to refrain from posting bikini pictures, I really do. Apparently if you post that, it means you don’t play tennis or something.
“It’s influenced a little bit how I act. Maybe I’m just getting more mature and I’m like, ‘Look, I’m not going to post butt pictures every day.”
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