It wasn’t supposed to be gold for Iga Swiatek, despite claiming 4 grand slams in the same court on which she lost to the Chinese national. However, she was also not supposed to end her Olympics claim empty-handed. The Pole tennis star did the impossible as she gathered herself after receiving a huge backlash and heartbreak to claim victory in the bronze medal match. And hence fulfilling her father’s wish, to win a medal at the Olympics.
After she lost to Qinwen Zheng in the semifinals, Swiatek broke down in front of the world as she grieved the loss. Many would have thought that it would be tough for her to recover in just a few hours. However, the Pole was back, as she crushed Slovakia’s hope for a medal in tennis in straight sets (6-2, 6-1). She had once declared how much the Olympics mean to her, with her father as the inspiration. She had said, “also because of my father, who was an Olympian and competed in rowing in Seoul in 1988. Since childhood, I have heard many positive things about the Olympics from him.”
After an unfortunate loss in the semis, Swiatek, while everyone pointed a finger at her father. The World No.1 might have drawn the inspiration to make a comeback. Her father believed in his daughter and her team of professionals who had her back throughout. Switaek stepped on the court with utter confidence. And the rest was history, as she was determined to bury the ghost of Tokyo and fulfill her father’s dream. Lo-and-behold. It did happen! And she shed tears again in front of the world. This time they reflected happiness and maybe satisfaction. As the mission was accomplished. Though Gold would have been better, but Olympic heartbreaks can only heal with Olympic medals!
Tennis fans shared the beautiful winning moment of the Pole on X:
However, Swiatek still wished to stay on the court tomorrow and have a shot at the Gold. However, that dream has to wait for another 4 years, before she takes another shot at the glory. But as she relaxes with her bronze medal, Swiatek certainly breathes in peace and positivity after drawing a lot of negative and dark light after an emotional loss yesterday!
“Happy, peace and professional,” is how Iga Swiatek soaked in Olympic glory after winning bronze
The last 24 hours have been a whirlpool of emotions for the Pole. Hence, after finally claiming her first Olympic medal, Swiatek chose to sit down and soak the moment. As she wrapped her head around the fact that she had fulfilled the long-standing wish of her father. And she won’t be leaving Paris empty-handed. And when she was asked about the moment after easily winning the match, “What was going through your mind?” She had this to say:
“I don’t know honestly.. a lot of mixed emotions. I’d love to play the final tomorrow. But just getting up here today and really enjoying playing and being able to do everything professionally and playing such a tennis that I could really kind of have peace in my mind gave me a lot. I’m happy I could do it and finish this tournament on a positive note.” – she said. The rollercoaster has finally stopped, and in the end, she won!
All well that ends well! The favorite finally got her happy, peaceful and a professional ending. Though it might have been happier, but something is undoubtedly better than nothing.
