Sam Stosur and Lleyton Hewitt will captain the Australian Olympic Tennis group on the Paris 2024 Olympic Video games, with the tennis occasions to be staged at Roland Garros.
Paris, France, 24 July 2024 | Harriet Rendle
Sam Stosur and Lleyton Hewitt captain the Australian Olympic Tennis group on the Paris 2024 Olympic Video games this week.
5-time Olympian Stosur, the one Australian tennis participant to signify the nation at 5 Video games, will lead the ladies’s group alongside girls’s coach and two-time Olympian Nicole Pratt.
The 2011 US Open champion retired from skilled tennis final 12 months and was appointed Australia’s Billie Jean King Cup captain in December 2023.
“I by no means thought I’d be going to a different Olympics in any type of capability. So, yeah, very excited to be heading to Paris and supporting all of the gamers,” stated Stosur, who competed at Tokyo 2020, Rio 2016, London 2012, Beijing 2008 and Athens 2004.
Stosur recalled her feelings strolling in a number of opening ceremonies and being a member of the broader Australian Olympic group.
“Going out to among the opening ceremonies and strolling, by means of the tunnel with the higher Australian group, the power and, , the sound and the noise. I’m getting goosebumps speaking about it,” she stated.
“I believe the opening ceremonies have been completely unbelievable, to have the ability to march and be a part of, and clearly the competing and every part else.
“I believe simply feeling like you’re part of clearly the tennis group, which is such a small a part of the higher Australian group, it’s, , 400 athletes or one thing. It’s a extremely particular place to be in.”
Now as captain, Stosur shall be on the sidelines to assist Australia’s girls, whereas encouraging them to get pleasure from Olympic Village life.
“Now to be on this place making an attempt to assist them by means of, to hopefully win medals and get essentially the most, , out of themselves and the occasion, is a superb place to be in. I believe I’ve obtained plenty of expertise to try to move on,” she stated.
“Particularly at first while you first get there, it’s thrilling. It may be a bit chaotic. I believe generally you bought to form of take all that in while you first arrive and type of get it relaxed… Open your eyes, see every part so then you definitely really feel such as you’ve form of skilled numerous it after which you may type of get all the way down to enterprise.
“The beauty of the tennis occasion is clearly someplace that each one the gamers are actually acquainted with taking part in at Roland Garros.”
Hewitt, who at age 19 made his first Olympic group, represented Australia at three Olympics together with London 2012, Beijing 2008 and Sydney 2000.
Since 2016, the previous world No.1 and two-time Grand Slam singles champion has captained Australia’s Davis Cup group.
Hewitt will lead the lads’s group alongside coach Jaymon Crabb.
“First time truly going as a captain within the Olympic format,” Hewitt stated. “I used to be lucky sufficient to play in three Olympic Video games as effectively. So I’m very honored to get this chance and clearly assist the blokes each time they placed on the inexperienced and gold.
“I used to be very lucky and I used to be in a position to get in to Sydney, clearly our residence video games, my first one in 2000. I used to be lucky sufficient to share a room with Pat Rafter. He was like an older brother to me, and he was a man that I idolised and appeared as much as for therefore a few years, as an Australian tennis participant and obtained to world No.1, gained Grand Slams and to be alongside him, and form of hang around with him in the course of the Sydney Olympics was fairly particular.
“I believe one of many different actual particular ones was attending to play at Wimbledon, the All England Membership within the London Olympics Video games. That was actually one thing particular to play an Olympic Video games on a unique floor as effectively.”
Like Stosur, Hewitt shall be encouraging the lads’s group to embrace the Olympic expertise as a lot as doable.
“There’s quite a bit occurring… And there’s various distractions. So I believe while you first get within the village, it’s making an attempt to get pleasure from it as a lot as doable. I do know the Australian group, as an entire, with each sport is a really close-knit group as effectively.
“While you’re two or three days out from truly having to go on the market and play, it’s time to actually begin specializing in what it’s a must to do to get your preparation proper.
“Clearly that is fairly particular, attending to play at one other Grand Slam location in Roland Garros in Paris.”
Hewitt believes the Olympics play a extremely essential function on the tennis tour.
“It’s unbelievably essential. And I believe coming from a rustic like Australia as effectively, we’re a really sporting nation. We’ve had a lot success within the Olympic Video games over so a few years, and we’re spoiled within the sport of tennis,” he stated.
“We get the chance to play at these unbelievable venues all year long, however particularly the 4 Grand Slams. A few of these different smaller sports activities… they get this chance to play within the Olympics as soon as in each 4 years for them. That is what they work in direction of.
“In a way, it’s a little bit totally different to tennis. However you simply see the blokes which are taking part in and the way a lot they wish to one get a medal, however clearly particularly to get the gold medal.”