Just like in the last Olympics this image is going to stay with me :(
Jaw set, eyes and face red, she conceded later it was not her best effort.
“It’s the result of the match. So I just messed up,” Swiatek told Eurosport Poland afterward. “I just had a hole in my backhand. It happens rarely because it is usually my most solid strike.
“I was not technically well-positioned because of the stress and the fact that I played my games day by day. We didn’t have time to adjust that and work on that. I know that’s not the justification, but I tried to correct that during the match. Today it didn’t work at all.”
But Swiatek can make up for some of that disappointment Friday.
Despite perceptions to the contrary, Swiatek’s Olympic dreams did not die with that loss to Zheng. The 23-year-old from Poland still has a chance to win a medal in Paris -- it’s just a different color than the one she imagined.
On Friday the World No.1 takes on Anna Karolina Schmiedlova of Slovakia. To the victor goes the bronze medal, a coveted piece of hardware sure to be cherished forever.
For context, here are the past three bronze medalists in women’s singles: Victoria Azarenka (2012), Petra Kvitova (2016), Elina Svitolina (2020). Formidable players across the board.
Before the tournament began at Roland Garros, Swiatek was asked what it would mean to win a medal.
“It would mean, obviously, a lot,” she answered. “I’ll really work hard to achieve that.”
It’s still within her grasp. Swiatek is particularly motivated to do something that eluded her father Tomasz, who rowed in the 1988 Olympics for Poland. His boat in the men’s quadruple sculls event failed to make the final but won the “B” final for seventh place.
Swiatek, who saw several streaks ended in the 6-2, 7-5 loss to Zheng, is essentially playing a home game in Paris. She’s 39-3 at the Paris venue and has won 25 of her past 26 matches. She also won 23 of her past 24 matches on clay this year.
If she can put her heartbreak aside quickly, Swiatek will be the heavy favorite on Friday. It will be the first meeting between Swiatek and Schmiedlova. The Slovakian has one Top 5 win in her career, which she tallied just this week. She paved her way to the medal rounds by defeating No.5 Jasmine Paolini in the Round of 16 before ousting Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova in the quarterfinals.
wtatennis.com
Still trying to process it all. It's been hours since it happened and I still can't get the image of poor Iga standing by that wall crying as the interviewer goes to commercial.
Every time I see Iga cry like this it absolutely breaks me.
To all those people who think Olympics doesn't matter to Tennis players all you have to do is look at people like Iga and Andy Murray and you'll see exactly how wrong a notion that is.
Everyone expected her to win this after the draw completely opened up, because of her record at Roland Garros, the surface etc. Polish media and people in general were practically hanging that gold medal on her neck before she even made it past the semis.
To all those people who think Olympics doesn't matter to Tennis players all you have to do is look at people like Iga and Andy Murray and you'll see exactly how wrong a notion that is.
Everyone expected her to win this after the draw completely opened up, because of her record at Roland Garros, the surface etc. Polish media and people in general were practically hanging that gold medal on her neck before she even made it past the semis.
Internal and external pressure when playing for your country is really the worst thing in the world for an athlete.
It's such a double edged sword it can carry you to your greatest triumphs, but it can also crushes you mentally.
I remember Iga saying after her loss last year at Aussie Open something about not wanting to win but being afraid to lose. This is what this felt like. She wanted this so badly that it paralyzed her.
She was up 4-0 in the 2nd set and could not keep her advantage because nerves would not allow her to relax enough to stop making unforced errors (a very uncharacteristic 36 in total).
Iga is the best front runner in the world in any other tournament she probably would have won the 2nd set 6/0 or 6/1.
But the Olympics bring with it a different kind of pressure and it completely weighed her down today.
Probably her worst showing on clay since 2021.
I must say the worst thing about all of this, the saddest really is the amount of hate I'm seeing her receive online with this loss. I really hope she doesn't get back on social media till well after the event is through.
It feels like Poland as a nation doesn't appreciate Iga enough, and they constantly forget how young she still is. At the end of the day Iga is still a human who has bad days at work just like the rest of us.
Hers have just been a lot less frequent this year.
I have no doubt she will get a gold medal in her career might even be in the next Olympics in LA (yes it won't be at her favourite venue or surface). But someone with Iga's talent who works hard to improve with each season is too good not to.
She already made huge strides this year by reaching the semis something no other Polish player in history has ever done. Last Olympics she lost in the 2nd round. And she still has a chance for a bronze medal tomorrow.
There's so much to be proud of.
Even though some people seem to be under the impression that a bronze means nothing.
A medal is a medal and in the case of the Bronze you still have to play for it in order to get it. So her work at this Olympics is nowhere near finished.
I'm sure her disappointment is immeasurably immense, but I hope she's able to regroup and win with Schmidlova tomorrow, and does it for Poland, for her dad, but most of all for herself.
Keep your head up Iga, Poland is extremely proud and we always will be no matter the result. We're here for the whole journey the good and the bad.
Jazda!
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