Key Facts about Tennis at the Paris 2024 Olympics.

Posted on by Ibtehaj Tahir

History

  • Origins: The precursor to modern tennis, “jeu de paume” (game of the hand), originated in France in the 11th century.
  • Olympic Debut: Tennis was featured in the first modern Olympics in Athens in 1896, with women’s singles added in 1900.
  • Olympic Hiatus: After 1924, tennis disappeared from the Olympics and did not return until 1988.

Dates and Venue

  • Tournament Dates: The Olympic tennis tournament will be held from Saturday, July 27 to Sunday, August 4, 2024.
  • Venue: The matches will take place at Roland Garros, the site of the French Open in southwest Paris. The venue includes:
  • 12 match courts
  • 6 practice courts
  • Court Philippe Chatrier (15,000 capacity, retractable roof)
  • Court Suzanne Lenglen (9,000 capacity, retractable roof)
  • Surface: Red clay, which typically plays slower than hard courts.

Match Format

  • Sets: All matches will be best of three sets, unlike the Grand Slam tournaments where men’s singles are best of five.

Participants

  • Countries and Players: 41 countries will be represented by 184 players across five events: men’s and women’s singles and doubles, plus mixed doubles.
  • Player Limits:
  • Singles: 64 players per event
  • Doubles: 32 teams per event
  • Mixed Doubles: 16 teams
  • Each country can have up to four singles players per gender and up to two doubles teams per event.

Notable Players and Absences

  • Returning Champions:
  • Rafael Nadal (2008 Gold Medalist, Spain)
  • Andy Murray (2012, 2016 Gold Medalist, Great Britain) – prioritizing doubles
  • Alexander Zverev (2020 Gold Medalist, Germany)
  • Withdrawals:
  • Jannik Sinner (Italy) withdrew due to tonsillitis.
  • Andy Murray (Great Britain) will not compete in singles.
  • Elena Rybakina (Women’s third seed) withdrew after the draw.

Top-Seeded Players

  • Men’s Singles:
  • 1. Novak Djokovic (Serbia)
  • 2. Carlos Alcaraz (Spain)
  • 3. Alexander Zverev (Germany)
  • 4. Daniil Medvedev (Neutral)
  • Other notable seeds include Taylor Fritz (USA), Casper Ruud (Norway), and Stefanos Tsitsipas (Greece).
  • Women’s Singles:
  • 1. Iga Swiatek (Poland)
  • 2. Coco Gauff (USA)
  • Other top seeds include Jessica Pegula (USA), Maria Sakkari (Greece), and Leylah Fernandez (Canada).
  • Men’s Doubles:
  • Top-seeded teams include Kevin Krawietz / Tim Puetz (Germany), Taylor Fritz / Tommy Paul (USA), and Joe Salisbury / Neal Skupski (Great Britain).
  • Women’s Doubles:
  • Top-seeded teams include Coco Gauff / Jessica Pegula (USA), Barbora Krejcikova / Katerina Siniakova (Czech Republic), and Gabriela Dabrowski / Leylah Fernandez (Canada).
  • Mixed Doubles:
  • Notable teams include Laura Siegemund / Alexander Zverev, Ellen Perez / Matthew Ebden, and Maria Sakkari / Stefanos Tsitsipas.

The Paris 2024 Olympics promise exciting tennis matches with a mix of seasoned champions and emerging talents competing on the historic red clay courts of Roland Garros.

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