Iga Swiatek lost in the semifinals of the 2024 Paris Olympics, missing out on a chance to win a gold medal for Poland. The 23-year-old was an overwhelming favorite to win the tournament given her performance history, recent form and dominance on the clay courts of Paris.
Swiatek faced Chinese star Qinwen Zheng in the last four having not lost at the Philipe Chartier Court since 2021. However, her unbeaten run ended with a straight-sets defeat. The Pole could barely control her tears post-match, evidencing the pressure on the players while competing for major honors.Over the years, many tennis stars have tried to win an Olympic gold medal but have failed in their quest.
Some of the all-time greats like Roger Federer, Pete Sampras and Maria Sharapova have never won an Olympic gold medal in singles, while Novak Djokovic too is still looking for his first gold for Serbia. However, Steffi Graf did the unthinkable by winning the Calendar Slam along with an Olympic gold medal, an achievement yet to be replicated in tennis.
Steffi Graf’s incredible 1988 season
Steffi Graf was untouchable during the 1988 season. The German star was by far the best player in the world, dominating every tournament that she participated in.Graff, who won her maiden Grand Slam at the French Open in 1987, started the season well by winning the Australian Open. This was the first Grand Slam title of the four in a year, all of which she would go on to win in 1988, an achievement only once before achieved in women’s singles the Open Era and only twice before in tennis overall till date.
Graf followed her triumph in Melbourne by defending her French Open title, before adding the Wimbledon and US Open titles to her name. The German then won a gold medal at the Seoul Olympics in 1988 to complete the Golden Slam.While many people have come close to winning a Calendar Slam or an Olympics gold, no player in the Open Era has managed to match Graf’s achievement of winning all four Grand Slam titles and an Olympic gold medal in the same year.
The fact that Steffi Graf stands alone as the only player to complete a Golden Slam even 25 years after her retirement shows the magnitude of her achievement.
Iga Swiatek faltering under pressure shows the immensity of Graf’s achievement
Iga Swiatek was the overwhelming favorite to win an Olympic gold medal in the French capital this year. The Pole has an impressive record on the red clay of Paris and is already hailed as the ‘Queen of Clay’ for her 95% win rate at Roland Garros, winning four titles in five years including three titles in a row since 2022.
Swiatek started her Olympic campaign well, showing off her usual dominance on the clay court. However, a shock defeat to Zheng meant that Swiatek will have to wait another four years to achieve her Olympic dream.
The fact that the Olympics were played at Swiatek’s beloved Roland Garros would have put a lot of pressure on the World No. 1. The Pole is the best player in the world on clay surface and there were already talks about this being Swiatek’s best chance of winning an Olympic gold medal. Her tears at the end of the match were partly an indication of the pressure on Swiatek, who was unbeaten in Paris since 2021.
In the past, players like Novak Djokovic too have succumbed to the pressure of making history. The Serbian was chasing a historic Calendar Slam in 2021 and made it to the final of the US Open after winning the Australian Open, the French Open and Wimbledon. He was the favorite going into his match against Daniil Medvedev but met with a straight sets loss against his Russian opponent.
With two of the best players at this time, Novak Djokovic and Iga Swiatek, failing in their quest to complete a Calendar Slam or win an Olympic gold medal, Steffi Graf’s achievement gains further importance. The German ace winning all five Major titles in 1988 will go down as the greatest tennis achievement of all time and is difficult to ever be replicated.
