The Serbian tennis player Novak Djokoviccurrently number 2 in the ATP Rankings, achieved one of his most desired goals by obtaining the gold medal at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
The victory was celebrated with great fervor in his hometown, Belgrade, where more than 100 thousand people gathered on Monday to welcome him as a sporting hero.
Nole, who needed five Olympic editions to win the gold medal, was crowned champion with a series of straight-set victories against high-calibre rivals.
Among them are Australian Matthew Ebden, Spaniard Rafael Nadal (ranked 158th), German Dominic Koepfer (82nd), Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas (11th), Italian Lorenzo Musetti (18th) and Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz (3rd).
In his speech to the crowd, Djokovic highlighted: “I entered the Olympics without any titles during the season and with an injury on my back. Many questioned the quality of my tennis, few considered me a favorite. But I secretly believed”said the former world number 1.
And Djokovic highlighted: “I knew that this was probably my last chance to win gold. It was one of my best tournaments, I didn’t lose a set. I felt the support of the people. Without false modesty, this is my most important sporting achievement. I proudly bring the gold medal back to Serbia.”.
The event was also attended by Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, who paid tribute to Djokovic and other outstanding Serbian athletes at this edition of the Games.
These include the men’s water polo team, the mixed 10-metre pistol team, taekwondo athlete Aleksandra Perisic and the men’s basketball team, which won bronze by defeating Germany.
Djokovic, born in Belgrade on May 22, 1987, thus added a new consecration to his impressive list of achievements, which includes 99 titles, 24 of them in Grand Slam tournaments.surpassing Spaniard Rafael Nadal and Swiss Roger Federer.
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