World tennis No. 1 had heartbreaking message about missing Paris Olympics

Jul 9, 2024; London, United Kingdom; Jannik Sinner (ITA) reacts after missing a shot against Daniil Medvedev (not pictured) in a gentlemen’s singles quarter-final match on day nine of The Championships Wimbledon 2024 at The All England Lawn Tennis Club. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

Italian tennis star Jannik Sinner on Saturday did not hide how much it hurt him to miss out on the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Sinner in June achieved his longtime goal of becoming the No. 1 men’s tennis player in the world. But the top-ranked player had to pull out from representing his country in the Olympics due to a serious bout with tonsillitis .

With Paris off the table, Sinner was the biggest name participating in this month’s Canadian Open held in Montreal and Toronto. Several of the biggest names in tennis have already withdrawn due to their advancement in the Olympics or overall fatigue from participating in the quadrennial event.

Ahead of his first-round match on Wednesday, the top-seeded Sinner was asked by Italian tennis reporter Giovanni Pelazzo about whether he had been watching the Olympics. Sinner admitted that he was too heartbroken to watch but was proud of the success of his fellow Italians.

“I saw some of the Olympics, although I didn’t watch much tennis,” Sinner said, according to Google Translate. “It broke my heart not to be able to go to Paris, the Games were one of my main goals of the season.

“In the end though, looking at everything from a broader perspective, [Lorenzo] Musetti won bronze, so Italy is happy and I am happy for him.”

Sinner was supposed to compete in the Olympic men’s singles tournament and also in the men’s doubles alongside Musetti.

Musetti finished with a Bronze medal in men’s singles, besting Canada’s Felix Auger Aliassime in the third-place match. Italy also has the women’s doubles tandem of Sara Errani and Jasmine Paolini competing in the gold medal match on Sunday.

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