Iga Swiatek is heading back to a favored venue in Paris with hopes of clinching her first Olympic gold medal, aiming to complement her impressive tally of four French Open titles at Roland Garros. The Polish world number one has dominated the clay courts of Paris, winning four of the last five tournaments and remaining unbeaten since a quarter-final loss to Greece’s Maria Sakkari in 2021.
The five-time Grand Slam champion, who also won the US Open in 2022, is determined to surpass her performance at the Tokyo 2021 Games, where she was defeated by Paula Badosa in the second round. With ample time to prepare for the Paris Olympics after her early exit from Wimbledon—where she was knocked out by Yulia Putintseva in the third round—Swiatek is using this period to regroup.
Reflecting on her Wimbledon defeat, which ended a 21-match winning streak, Swiatek commented, “For sure I’m going to take a lesson and rest a bit more. I feel like even though I didn’t perform well at this tournament, considering the whole season, I deserve it.”
In 2020, Swiatek made her mark by winning the French Open without dropping a set, becoming the first Polish player to secure a Grand Slam singles title. Her dominance on clay continued last month when she defeated Italy’s Jasmine Paolini to become the fourth woman in the modern era to win the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen four times, joining the ranks of Justine Henin, Chris Evert, and Steffi Graf. She also completed the prestigious Madrid-Rome-Roland Garros clay treble, a feat only matched by Serena Williams.
Swiatek’s sporting pedigree extends to her father, Tomasz Swiatek, who represented Poland in rowing at the 1988 Seoul Olympics. Her early tennis coaches, Artur Szostaczko and Michal Kaznowski, recall her determination and fierce competitive spirit from a young age. Szostaczko noted, “I knew that if it went to a super tie-break, there was no need to worry— Iga wouldn’t crack under the pressure.”
As Swiatek prepares for the Paris Olympics, her drive and resilience are expected to propel her towards a potential gold medal, cementing her legacy on the courts she knows best.
