Tag Archives: Paris Olympics

Rafael Nadal Named to Spain’s Davis Cup Finals Roster Alongside Carlos Alcaraz

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Rafael Nadal is preparing to represent Spain once again…

The 38-year-old Spanish tennis star, who represented Spain at the 2024 Paris Games, has been named to Spain’s roster for the Davis Cup finals alongside Carlos Alcaraz.

Rafael NadalThe announcement raises the possibility of a renewal of Nadal and Alcaraz’s “Nadalcaraz” doubles partnership from the Paris Olympics.

Nadal, a 22-time Grand Slam champion, hasn’t competed anywhere since the Olympics, where he lost in the second round of singles to longtime rival Novak Djokovic and paired with Alcaraz to get to the quarterfinals of men’s doubles before exiting against Americans Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram.

Nadal then withdrew from the US Open and the Laver Cup while still dealing with health issues that’ve limited him to competing only sparingly over the past two seasons.

Alcaraz earned the men’s singles titles at the French Open in June and Wimbledon in July to raise his career Slam total to four at the age of 21.

Spain will take on the Netherlands in the quarterfinal round of the Davis Cup finals, an eight-team event November 19-24 in Malaga, Spain.

The other opening matchups are: defending champion Italy vs. Argentina; the United States vs. Australia; and Germany vs. Canada.

Gabriel Medina Rebounds to Earn Bronze in Men’s Surfing at 2024 Paris Games

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2024 Paris GamesIt may not be the color everyone anticipated, but Gabriel Medina is still an Olympic medalist at the 2024 Paris Games. 

The 30-year-old Brazilian professional surfer, a three-time surfing world champion and viral photo sensation, had to settle for Olympic bronze in Tahiti on Monday after going into the 2024 Summer Olympics as a widely tipped favorite.

Gabriel MedinaBeaten in the semifinals by Australian Jack Robinson after taking only one wave, Medina was more creative in the bronze match against the surprise of the men’s draw, Alonso Correa, winning with a score of 15.54 to the Peruvian’s 12.43.

Modest surf conditions resulted in a tight duel, but Medina chose his waves better in the final 20 minutes to seal third on the podium.

Gabriel MedinaAn AFP photograph of Medina celebrating after kicking out of a wave last week after a ride that earned a record Olympic score became a global sensation, and a defining image of the sport and the Paris Olympics.

Gabriel Medina

Caroline Garcia Named to France’s Olympic Tennis Team for 2024 Paris Games

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Caroline Garcia will be competing at the upcoming Paris Olympics.

The 20-year-old Spanish-French tennis player, a two-time French Open doubles champion, has been selected to France’s tennis team for the 2024 Paris Games on Friday but not her frequent partner Kristina Mladenovic.

Caroline GarciaGarcia and Mladenovic won at Roland Garros — the Olympic venue next month — in 2016 and 2022. Their most recent Grand Slam appearance was at the Australian Open, where they reached the quarterfinals. They haven’t played together on tour since February.

Mladenovic is a former doubles No. 1 who has slipped to No. 55. She has nine Grand Slam doubles titles, including four French.

Garcia played only singles at the French Open this year and bowed out in the second round.

She will play the Olympic doubles with Diane Parry. Also on the women’s team were Clara Burel and Varvara Gracheva. 

Olympic tennis starts July 27.

Rafael Nadal to Play Singles & Doubles at 2024 Paris Games

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Rafael Nadal is set to play at the 2024 Paris Games.

The 38-year-old Spanish professional tennis player has been named to the Spanish tennis team for the Paris Olympics, where he’ll also partner with French Open champion Carlos Alcaraz in doubles, the Royal Spanish Tennis Federation has announced.

Rafael NadalNadal, who has been limited the past two years by a number of injuries, has said the Olympic Games were his focus and that he could skip Wimbledon to prepare.

“My main goal now is to play Olympics,” Nadal said after losing in the first round at Roland Garros on May 27. “That’s going to be here. So I need to prepare myself the proper way to try to arrive here healthy and well prepared, and then let’s see.”

Nadal and Alcaraz will play in both singles and doubles at the Games.

The tennis competition will be held at Roland Garros, where Nadal is a 14-time Grand Slam champion and Alcaraz just won the French Open on Sunday.

“One pair, which I think everyone knows and was hoping for, is Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal and the second pair is yet to be decided. It hasn’t been 100% confirmed yet,” national team coach David Ferrer told reporters.

Alcaraz, who will be making his Olympic debut, has set winning an Olympic medal for Spain as one of his top career goals. He said after winning at Roland Garros that this year he would prefer a gold medal at the Paris Olympics over successfully defending his Wimbledon title.

“The Olympic Games are every four years and it’s a special tournament where you’re not only playing for yourself, but for a country, representing every Spaniard,” the No. 2-ranked Alcaraz said. “I think this year I’d choose Olympic gold.”

Nadal has a singles gold medal from the 2008 Beijing Games and a 2016 gold in doubles, when he played with Marc Lopez.

Spain also selected Pablo Carreno Busta, Alejandro Davidovich and Marcel Granollers (doubles) for the men’s competition. Captain Anabel Medina picked No. 55 Sara Sorribes Tormo and No. 67 Cristina Bucsa — the top-ranked Spanish players — for the women’s team, with Paula Badosa deciding not to compete as she has only two more events to play while using her protected ranking.

Jenni Hermoso & Aitana Bonmatí Help Spain’s Women’s Soccer Team Qualify for First Olympic Games

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Jenni Hermoso and Aitana Bonmatí have helped Spain make Olympic history…

The Spanish tennis stars helped Spain beat the Netherlands 3-0 in the UEFA Women’s Nations League semifinals on Friday, a victory that secured the world champions a spot in the Paris Olympics.

Jenni Hermoso & Aitana BonmatíHermoso opened the scoring with a nice solo effort in the 41st minute before Ballon d’Or holder Bonmatí doubled the lead in the 45th. Left back Ona Batlle added the third in the 77th to complete the dominant performance by the hosts.

Spain will face France in the first Women’s Nations League final in the same La Cartuja Stadium on Wednesday. France beat Germany 2-1 in Friday’s other semifinal.

Qualifying for Spain’s first Olympic Games is the first important success for the team since Montse Tomé took over in September following the scandal that erupted when former Spanish soccer federation president Luis Rubiales kissed Hermoso without her consent at the World Cup final.

“[I and my staff] took charge in a difficult moment that nobody wanted and we took a step forward,” Tomé said. “We are proud of the work we have done. This team deserves to play an Olympic Games after all the prior generations who fought for it and came up short.”

Spain started strong in front of their fans in southern Seville.

Striker Salma Paralluelo, who scored the winner to help Spain beat the Dutch in last year’s Women’s World Cup quarterfinals, missed twice from close-range before she was stopped by goalkeeper Daphne van Domselaar in a one-on-one opportunity early on.

More shots came from Olga Carmona and Irene Paredes, while the Netherlands could threaten only through Lineth Beerensteyn‘s powerful shot saved by Cata Coll.

The Dutch resistance finally faltered when Hermoso used two slick changes of feet to avoid three defenders and beat Van Domselaar for the opener.

Bonmatí added a quick second blow when she raced forward to volley home a cross from Barcelona clubmate Mariona Caldentey.

The Netherlands improved after half-time, but Battle caught the visitors off guard when she finished off an attack that started with her own cross.

Spain coach Tomé gave a debut to 17-year-old Vicky López in the second half.

A moment of silence was held before kickoff in memory of the victims of a deadly fire in the eastern Spanish city of Valencia.