Who is Anna Karolina Schmiedlova? World No 67 on historic run at Paris 2024
The tennis event at the Olympics always manages to throw up a surprise.
No one would have predicted Karen Khachanov or Marketa Vondrousova to reach the gold medal matches in Tokyo three years – or for Monica Puig to sensationally claim the title at Rio 2016.
This year, Paris 2024 has thrown up another big shock in the form of Slovakia’s Anna Karolina Schmiedlova.
The 29-year-old was not considered a medal contender by anyone, but an extraordinary, historic run means she will play for a medal this week.
We dive into Schmiedlova’s career-best run – and look at why it is so surprising.
A run out of nowhere
Schmiedlova reached her first WTA level semi-final of 2024 in Budapest just two weeks ago and held a solid – but unspectacular – 23-17 record across WTA and ITF action this season.
No one saw this run coming from the world No 67, who has now become the lowest-ranked Olympic women’s singles semi-finalist of the modern era – eclipsing Li Na’s ranking of No 42 from Beijing 2008 – while also becoming Slovakia’s first-ever singles semi-finalist,
The Slovakian started her run with an impressive win over Katie Boulter, prevailing in straight sets, before claiming her first significant scalp in round two – defeating 14th seed Beatriz Haddad Maia 6-4, 6-4.
Schmiedlova was then an overwhelming underdog in round three against fourth seed and medal favourite Jasmine Paolini, who’d reached Roland Garros and Wimbledon finals earlier this summer.
But, in an extraordinary contest, the world No 67 prevailed, edging past the Italian 7-5, 3-6, 7-5 to seal just the second top-10 win of her career.
That was followed straight away by her third against Krejcikova, beating the ninth seed and Wimbledon champion 6-4, 6-2 in Wednesday’s quarter-final.
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Clay court pedigree
If a run like this was going to come anywhere for Schmiedlova, it was always likely to be on clay.
The Slovak has won three career titles and two have come on the dirt, in Bucharest in 2015 and Bogota in 2018.
She was also runner-up at the Rio Open in 2015, beaten by clay specialist and former Roland Garros finalist Sara Errani.
The best Grand Slam run of her career was also on this site at the 2023 French Open, reaching the second week of a major for the first and, to date, only time.
Schmiedlova stunned 11th seed Veronika Kudermetova in round one and then beat Aliona Bolsova and Kayla Day, before a straight-sets loss to Coco Gauff.
Career peak
Schmiedlova has never quite reached the heights many once expected her to reach, with the peak of her career coming as a 21-year-old in 2015.
That was the year she reached the Rio final and won titles in Bucharest and on the indoor hard courts of Katowice, reaching a career-high of 26th that October.
After ending 2015 at that ranking, she had dropped down a staggering 201 spots by the end of 2016, and never quite regained that spark – until now.
Schmiedlova is now just one match away from her first final in five years and just a sixth career final overall – and has an amazing opportunity to claim one of sport’s ultimate prizes: an Olympic medal.
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