5 singles players who have won an Olympic gold but never won a Grand Slam

#1. Elena Dementieva

Dementieva just missed out on a Grand Slam on two occasions

Arguably the best player of her generation not to win a Grand Slam, Dementieva was known for her offensive baseline play and her powerful groundstrokes. As an 18-year old, Dementieva reached the final of the 2000 Sydney Olympics where she was beaten by Venus Williams.

Eight years later at Beijing, Dementieva won the gold medal by defeating compatriot Dinara Safina in the final despite losing the first set.Dementieva reached a career-high ranking of World No.3 in 2009 and was ranked in the Top 10 by the time she retired in 2010. However, the Russian never won a single Grand Slam title with both her Grand Slam finals coming in 2004 and she lost both of them to compatriots.

Dementieva’s first Grand Slam final came at the French Open where she lost to Anastasia Myskina 1-6, 2-6. After a disappointing first round exit at the Wimbledon, Dementieva beat the likes of Amelie Mauresmo and Jennifer Capriati in the quarters and semis respectively to face ninth seeded Svetlana Kuznetsova in the final.

The 19-year old Kuznetsova beat Dementieva in straight sets to win her maiden Grand Slam title. Dementieva’s best Australian Open performance came in 2009 where she reached the semi-finals before losing to eventual champion Serena Williams.

At Wimbledon, Dementieva reached the semi-finals in 2008 and 2009, being beaten by the Williams sisters on both occasions- Venus in 2008 and Serena in 2009.