Emma Raducanu ‘creeped out’ by paparazzi photos and fake romance news
Emma Raducanu showed remarkable resilience to “get over” the scary stalking incident earlier this year as she admitted she is “done hiding”, but her new outgoing nature means she is now more exposed to the paparazzi.
The 2021 US Open winner endured a traumatic experience in Dubai in February as a man who “exhibited fixated behaviour” followed her during the Dubai Tennis Championships as he first approached her public and was then spotted during her second-round match against Karolina Muchova.
Raducanu broke out in tears during the clash against Muchova and was seen hiding behind the umpire’s chair as security was ordered to remove the man from the stadium.
The individual was later given a restraining order by Dubai police and was also banned from all future WTA events.
Naturally, Raducanu went into her shell after the incident and considered withdrawing from the Indian Wells and Miami Open in order to spend more time at home, but made the decision not to let the incident stop her from living her life.
In a wide-ranging interview with several publications, Raducanu said: “I think I went through some very difficult times on and off the court at the start of the year.
“But I think it really taught me, like the strength that I have to pull myself out of it. Also what I need to do to avoid falling back in again.
“A lot of it is spending time studying, spending time learning, spending time nurturing my brain and just constantly that’s something I need. Learning about myself has been a great thing. So I feel very content.”
These days, Raducanu is a lot more comfortable going out and about in her local neighbourhood of Bromley or travel to London to train at the National Tennis Centre in southwest London as the days of hiding are over.
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“In rush hour, people are so locked in to their world. They’re not really paying attention and probably not expecting to see me either,” she told BBC Sport.
“I have my hood up, or whatever, but they’re just so focused and absorbed in their own world. It’s all so crazy. It’s like everyone’s on a mission. You have to get the elbows out, just to get through.
“If people recognise me, if people see me, and they want to come up to me, then that’s great, but I don’t necessarily feel like I’m hiding from anything any more.”
But being in public means the paparazzi have more opportunities to take pictures and although she is “over” the stalker incident, recent stories about her private life show tabloids will always get creative.
“Honestly, I have gotten over it,” she stated. “What did creep me out was I saw a photo of myself in London, and I didn’t see the paps [paparazzi].
“I was with my two best friends. This happened last week, and it was some tabloid article saying I had a new boyfriend or whatever. But it’s literally my best friend’s brother. I was like: ‘Come on, guys. Come on. Be better. This is not [true].’
“I was with my best friend’s brother, and we were going to the rugby. And of course, they cropped my best friend out. It was just me and this guy, and I just didn’t see the paps. So that’s obviously creepy. You know, when you’re like: ‘I didn’t see them. How did they take this photo?’ But other than that, I feel good because someone’s always watching my back.”
