Tearful Gauff argues with ump, loses at Olympics

On July 30, 2024 at 1:21 PM

PARIS -- Coco Gauff experienced a situation she knew too well. An official made a call she believed was incorrect. The chair umpire refused to hear her out. Tears flowed down her face. The most disheartening part was losing, this time at the Paris Olympics.

The location remained unchanged: Court Philippe Chatrier was where the current US Open winner was knocked out in the third round of the Summer Games by Donna Vekic of Croatia, losing 7-6 (7), 6-2 on Tuesday.

This stadium is also the primary venue for the French Open every year, where Gauff recently faced a similar disagreement over a call while competing in a semifinal match against eventual champion Iga Swiatek.

Gauff mentioned that there have been several occasions this year when she felt like she had to speak up for herself during the game. She reiterated her suggestion for video review to be implemented in tennis, similar to other major sports.

"I felt like he predicted it before I hit the ball, and I don't believe the referee disagreed," she stated. "I think he just thought it didn't impact my swing, but I believe it did."

Gauff is a standout athlete at the 2024 Paris Games, hailing from Florida. At just 20 years old, she was ranked as the second seed in singles competition at the Olympics. In addition, she had the honor of carrying the flag for the United States during the opening ceremony last Friday.

On Tuesday evening, Gauff played a mixed doubles match with her U.S. teammate Taylor Fritz. They managed to secure a victory against Nadia Podoroska and Maximo Gonzalez, advancing to the quarterfinals. Gauff is also participating in the women's doubles event at the Paris Olympics alongside Jessica Pegula.

By the end of the day, playing doubles really motivates you to keep going. You don't want to negatively affect someone else because of your mindset," Gauff explained. "Earlier, Taylor and I discussed it: a medal is valuable no matter what. I have two other events where I could potentially achieve that, so I'm concentrating on them."

During the singles match, Vekic had a lot of fans cheering for her in the stands. They were chanting "Don-na! Don-na!" as she started to make a comeback after falling behind 4-1. When Vekic acknowledged the applause by waving her arms for more support, the crowd responded enthusiastically. Gauff then hit a backhand winner and gestured for the audience to cheer for her, which they did, causing Vekic to smile wryly.

When the controversial call was made near the end of the match, Gauff was already trailing by a significant margin.

In the game, Gauff served and the ball returned by Vekic landed close to the back line. At first, the line judge said that Vekic's shot was out, and Gauff didn't continue to play the ball. But the chair umpire, Jaume Campistol, believed that Vekic's shot was actually in bounds. He gave Vekic the point, which resulted in a break of Gauff's service and a 4-2 lead for Vekic.

Gauff approached the official to have a discussion, causing a brief delay in the game.

"I don't usually dispute these decisions. However, he made the call before I even made contact with the ball," Gauff explained to Campistol. "This isn't just a matter of opinion; it's about following the rules."

She won her first two singles matches with ease, only losing a total of five games. However, her performance in her first Olympic singles tournament was not her greatest on the hottest day of the Summer Games, with temperatures surpassing 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 Celsius).

"These situations are significant. Typically, they say sorry afterwards. It can be quite annoying. Apologies don't make a difference once the game is finished," Gauff explained. "I can't guarantee that I would have won the match if I had won that particular point."

Even prior to the controversy surrounding the umpire's call, Gauff was unable to maintain her strong beginning against Vekic, who reached the semifinals at Wimbledon earlier this month.

The American was in the lead 4-1 and was close to going up 5-1, with the chance to win the first set. However, she was unable to finish the match and missed a few set points at 6-4 in the tiebreaker that followed. Vekic managed to take control and win the set, and she continued to play well in the second set.

One way to show that Vekic was better that day: She hit 33 winning shots, while Gauff only hit nine.

"I won't claim that one factor influenced the outcome today," Gauff admitted, "as I was already at a disadvantage in the match."

Yet, the standout moment from the match was the heated exchange during the second set. Gauff brought up her loss to Swiatek while discussing the situation with Campistol and a court supervisor who intervened in the conversation on Tuesday.

"It keeps happening to me at the French Open. Every single time," Gauff said as she grasped a tennis ball in one hand and her racket in the other, expressing her frustration. "This has happened about four or five times already this year."

Vekic, who made it to the quarterfinals, kept to herself on the court and adjusted her strings.

Vekic shared their thoughts on the situation, mentioning that the umpire made a good decision despite the call being delayed. They expressed the need to rewatch the incident to fully understand what happened, as it can be difficult to assess accurately in the heat of the moment.

When Gauff decided to return to the court and continue playing, the fans expressed their frustration by loudly booing, mainly directed at the referee.

In the upcoming game, Gauff started off strong as she won the first point, causing the crowd to erupt in wild cheers for her.

However, just 10 minutes later, the game had ended.

During the weekend, Gauff mentioned her goal of winning three medals, one for each event in Paris. However, that plan has now been derailed.

"I really hope," Gauff expressed on Tuesday, "to bring back a souvenir."