Newly-crowned champion Carlos Alcaraz at the French Open and 14-time Roland Garros winner Rafael Nadal are set to grace the Olympic Games next month, as per an announcement by the Spanish tennis federation (RFET) on Wednesday.
Alcaraz, currently ranked second in the world, clinched his third major title at Roland Garros recently, setting the stage for the Olympic event scheduled to unfold on the clay courts of Paris from July 27 to August 4.
Nadal, a legend with 22 Grand Slam triumphs, made a comeback to the circuit last April following a challenging 16-month break due to injury, landing him at the 264th spot in singles rankings.
Apart from the singles competition, the duo, Alcaraz aged 21 and Nadal at 38, will team up for the doubles competition at the Games, a confirmation shared by men’s team coach David Ferrer.
Nadal’s accolades include an Olympic gold in singles in 2008 in Beijing and another in doubles at the 2016 Rio Games.
Joining forces with Alcaraz and Nadal in the Spanish men’s contingent are Alejandro Davidovich Fokina at the 32nd rank globally, Pablo Carreno Busta, and the second-ranked doubles player, Marcel Granollers.
Representing the women’s team are the Spanish top seed Sara Sorribes and the 67th-ranked Cristina Bucsa.
Paula Badosa, a one-time world number two troubled by injuries, now standing at 118th, won’t be part of the Paris squad.
RFET president Miguel Diaz Roman expressed optimism, anticipating multiple medals for Spain at the forthcoming Olympics.
By June 19, all national federations are mandated to submit their final roster for the Games, bounding the countdown to the anticipated sporting event.
