Among the most striking images from Paris 2024 have been those of the jam-packed stands at the iconic Roland-Garros. Seat of the second Major of the year, the French Open, it is now playing host to the Olympic tennis event for only the first time in its history.
The jamboree may be because of the star appeal. Five of the ATP’s top-10, including four of the top-five, and eight of the WTA’s top-10 featured in the draw in Paris.
And there is a special following for a battered Rafael Nadal willing himself through matches, a bruised Andy Murray escaping reality and hiding the timelessness of an athlete’s struggle, and an ambitious Novak Djokovic looking to add that one singles gold medal which will make his the best CV in men’s tennis history.
Stark contrast
This is a far cry from the late 1980s and 1990s when tennis was reintroduced as a medal sport (in 1988) after a lengthy hiatus since 1924. Though the legendary Steffi Graf won the gold at Seoul 1988 and went on to complete the ‘Golden Slam’ (winning all four Majors and the Olympic gold in a single season), Stefan Edberg was the only notable name among men that year.
Pete Sampras, the best player of the 1990s, turned up only for Barcelona 1992, and that came when he had won none of his 14 Major titles. At Atlanta 1996, only three of the ATP’s top-10 were present.
Fellow racquet sports, table tennis and badminton, made their debuts as official medal disciplines in 1988 and 1992 respectively, and in no time the Olympic gold became the ultimate honour in those sports. Tennis, in contrast, gave the greatest sporting extravaganza in the universe the cold shoulder.
Special occasion: Former World No. 1 Angelique Kerber says it’s ‘a different feeling when you’re wearing the outfit with the national colours’. | Photo credit: Getty Images
But not anymore. Tennis’ once tenuous relationship with the Olympic movement has seemingly ceased and the two are now moving hand in hand. If Naomi Osaka lit the Olympic flame at Tokyo 2020, tennis had an outsized presence at the opening ceremony in Paris, with Nadal, Serena Williams and Amelie Mauresmo all being part of the torch relay.
The United States of America, which has no dearth of Olympic champions, gave debutant tennis player and World No. 2 Coco Gauff the pride of place, bestowing the opportunity to be the nation’s flag-bearer alongside basketball legend LeBron James.
Nadal, injured for a good part of the last two years, skipped Wimbledon…