Kournikova told reporters that Hurley is “so ugly” after they were seated near each other at a Buckingham Palace charity event. According to the New York Daily News, British TV-anchor, Sophie Raworth, received an anonymous letter from an enraged Hurley fan stating that he would avenge the remark made about Hurley. The fan claimed to be a part of Combat 18 a group of right-wing neo-Nazis.
Scotland Yard is investigating the threat. Kournikova is not the first athlete to be targeted by the group, they also threatened British boxer Frank Bruno and swimmer Sharon Davies because they both have interracial marriages.
The 19-year-old tennis star has been advised to sharpen security when appearing in public. Tennis officials are said to be worried that the 1993 attack on Monica Seles by a Steffi Graf fan during a tournament in Hamburg, Germany might be repeated. Seles left the sport for two years to recover from the stab wound in her back.
Hurley who recently dumped her companion of thirteen years actor Hugh Grant handled the situation with grace. When asked to comment on Kournikova’s remarks, the stylish Hurley only replied, “Anna is a very pretty girl.”