Just a few days left before the curtain gets raised at Stade Roland Garros for the 2024 Paris Olympics. Plenty of superstars of the tennis world have already started to enlighten the venue with their charismatic presence. A total of 41 nations will be participating in the tennis event. Spanish tennis legend, Rafael Nadal, was recently spotted posing for pictures with various personalities at the Olympic Village in Paris. Everyone looked quite excited about brushing shoulders with the ‘King of Clay’, but no one was more excited than the Brazilian team doctor!
Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz are carrying a lot of expectations from the Spanish fans at this year’s Olympics. They arrived at the Olympic Village on Monday (July 22) and soon after their arrival, the spotlights changed their directions towards the Spanish team. After spotting Rafa at the iconic venue, the Brazilian team’s doctor Tathiana Rebizzi Parmigiano couldn’t resist capturing that once-in-a-lifetime moment in photo a frame. She posed with Nadal for a picture and later on uploaded that photo on her Instagram stories with a caption that read, “I died but I’m fine.”
Surely meeting Rafa is like a dream come true moment for not only tennis lovers but for all the fans across the world of sports. Parmigiano is an experienced doctor, and she has been working with the Brazilian Olympic team for more than 13 years now. Brazil has put up a strong team for this year’s mega event. Four top players of their nation will represent the country at the Paris Olympics. Who are they?
In the men’s events, Thiago Monteiro and Thiago Seyboth Wild have secured their place in the men’s division. They will feature in both singles and doubles events. However, on the women’s side, Beatriz Haddad Maia and Laura Pigossi will play singles, while Luisa Stefani will team up with Haddad Maia in doubles. Do you know these Brazilian tennis stars have a special admiration for the Spanish superstar, Rafael Nadal?
“He’s just a guy I have looked up my whole life” – Brazilian tennis stars reflect their love for Rafael Nadal
This is going to be Rafael Nadal’s fourth appearance at the Olympics. He made his debut in the 2004 Athens Olympics and then went on to clinch a gold medal in the singles event at the Beijing Olympics in 2008. Then after that, eight years later he won a gold medal in the Rio Olympics. However, the Spaniard couldn’t participate in the 2012 and 2020 editions due to injuries and health concerns. Now, with the Olympics happening at one of his favorite venues, how can he miss out on this chance?
The 14-time French Open champion has fans all over the world and two among the list of his biggest fans are Monteiro and Seyboth. During an interview, Thiago Monteiro once revealed, “Rafa is my idol; I watch how he plays all the time because he is a left-hander, just like me.” He loves his competitive nature and also spoke about how Rafa’s mentality is quite different from other tennis stars.
Even Thiago Seyboth Wild is a big fan of the Spaniard. “He’s just a guy I have looked up my whole life. The way he plays, the spirit he puts on the court, and the way he wants to win, you don’t see that every day, you don’t see that in anybody. He’s Rafael Nadal,” said Seyboth. Do you know his favorite book is Rafael Nadal’s biography? The 24-year-old Brazilian’s dream is to play against Nadal at Roland Garros. Now, time will tell if the Paris Olympics fulfills his wish this time.
