Olympic Games: 7 iconic tennis flagbearers – as Coco Gauff handed ultimate honour
Coco Gauff has been handed one of the greatest Olympic honours any athlete can hope for.
On Friday, she will join legendary basketballer Lebron James in leading Team USA in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games opening ceremony as a flagbearer.
It is an amazing moment for Gauff on her Olympic debut, but she is by no means the only tennis player handed the opportunity – with Nicolas Jarry confirmed as Chile’s flagbearer in Paris.
Ahead of Friday, we look back at seven iconic tennis stars who led their nation at the opening ceremony.
Gabriela Sabatini: Seoul 1988
Tennis returned to the Olympics in 1988, and the iconic Sabatini was among the high-profile flagbearers at that Games.
Despite being only 18 years old, the Argentine was already the world No 3 and was the third seed in the women’s singles.
Sabatini took home a silver medal, beaten by long-term rival Steffi Graf in the gold medal match.
Stefan Edberg: Barcelona 1992
After winning the exhibition event in 1984 and taking home bronze in 1988, Edberg received the honour of leading out Sweden in the opening ceremony of the Barcelona Games.
Edberg was a five-time Grand Slam singles winner at that stage and had been ranked as high as world No 1.
However, his Olympic campaign ended with a shock round one defeat to Andrei Chesnokov.
Roger Federer: Athens 2004 & Beijing 2008
One of the most iconic tennis players of all time and arguably Switzerland’s biggest sports star, Federer led his nation twice at the Olympics.
He was the flagbearer for the first time at the Athens 2004 Games, where he suffered round two defeats in both singles and doubles action.
Federer again led Switzerland as the flagbearer at the Beijing 2008 Games, beaten once again in the singles – but winning doubles gold alongside Stan Wawrinka.
Maria Sharapova: London 2012
Sharapova made history 12 years ago by becoming the first Russian woman to lead her nation at an Olympic opening ceremony.
The Russian had completed the Career Grand Slam earlier that season by winning the French Open and, at that time, was a four-time major winner.
Sharapova would ultimately claim a silver medal, beaten by Serena Williams in the final.
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Novak Djokovic: London 2012
At the same Games as Sharapova, Djokovic was handed the honour of leading out Serbia inside London’s Olympic Stadium.
The Serbian was the reigning Australian Open and US Open champion at the time and had found success in London previously – winning Wimbledon the previous summer.
However, his Olympic campaign ended in disappointment, just missing out on a medal in fourth.
Rafael Nadal: Rio 2016
Eight years on from winning singles gold in Beijing, Nadal led out Spain to start the Rio 2016 Games eight years ago.
His singles campaign ended in disappointment, with the former world No 1 forced to settle for fourth place.
However, Nadal struck gold in the doubles, triumphing alongside Marc Lopez.
Andy Murray: Rio 2016
One of the greatest British sportspeople ever, Murray was also a flagbearer at the Rio 2016 Games.
The Brit came in fresh off winning his second Wimbledon title, and was defending his gold medal from London 2012.
It ultimately proved to be a successful defence, the future world No 1 battling past Juan Martin del Potro in the gold medal match.
Honourable mentions
This was not an exhaustive list, with several other tennis stars performing flagbearer duties at one point.
Three years ago, former bronze medallist Petra Kvitova led out Czechia in Tokyo, with Danish star Caroline Wozniacki leading her country at Rio 2016.
Agnieszka Radwanska and Stan Wawrinka were among other tennis flagbearers at London 2012, while few can forget Naomi Osaka lighting the torch in Tokyo three years ago.
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