Olympics tennis star 'stuck in another country' and blasts chiefs after postponing event
The predicament comes just hours before the Olympics opening ceremony.
An Olympic tennis star has revealed she’s stuck in another country on the eve of the Games in Paris.
The French capital is gearing up to host its third edition of the Summer Olympics, with some events having already started.
As for the tennis competition, the draw was made on Thursday afternoon ahead of Saturday’s start date at the iconic Roland Garros venue.
A star-studded cast list will battle it out for the gold medal in the women’s single event, but one competitor’s hopes of making it to Paris in time appear to be hanging by a thread.
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Detailing her predicament on social media, Magda Linette told fans she currently has no way of getting to Paris before the ‘no-fly zone’ is introduced ahead of Friday’s opening ceremony.
The athlete representing Poland said on X: “Hey, what do you do when you have no friends with a private jet and the WTA postpones your final match, so you have no chance to fly to Paris for the Olympics before the air zone closes?”
Linette is scheduled to take on compatriot Magdalena French in the final of the Prague Open on Friday morning, a day before her Olympics opening round clash.
A no-fly zone the size of Belgium will be brought into place an hour before tonight’s (Friday's) opening ceremony in an attempt to add an extra layer of security.
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But for athletes not yet in Paris, the travel disruptions have stunted their pre-event preparations.
Linette ought to get her skates on too, given the world No.48 is in action early Sunday morning.
She’s been drawn against Mirra Andreeva - a Siberian-born tennis player who will be competing as a neutral athlete because of the ongoing ban on Russian athletes.
The winner could be dealt a tough task in round two, with recent Wimbledon runner-up likely to be Jasmine Paolini up next, should the Italian see off Ana Bogdan in her round one clash.
Ej, co się robi, kiedy nie ma się znajomych z Private Jetem, a WTA przesuwa Ci finałowy mecz, przez co nie masz szans dolecieć do Paryża na Igrzyska przed zamknięciem strefy powietrznej?
— Magda Linette (@MagdaLinette) July 25, 2024
Z @MFrech97 czekamy na Wasze tipy??????
Alongside Linette’s draw, fellow Pole and world No.1 Iga Swiatek faces an opening-round match against Irina-Camelia Begu.
Coco Gauff has been paired with Ajla Tomljanovic and Naomi Osaka will take on Angelique Kerber.
The only Team GB representative in the women’s singles, Katie Boulter, will fancy her chances of making it to round two after being drawn against world No.70 Anna Karolina Schmiedlova.
Things could get trickier after that though, as 14th seed Beatriz Haddad Maia is the Briton’s most likely second-round opponent.
