"How the world works": Iga Swiatek's psychologist Daria Abramowicz rues Pole's 'national treasure' status after she loses out on Olympic gold in Paris

Iga Swiatek's psychologist Daria Abramowicz, an integral part of the Pole's team, has rued the weight of expectations on the World No. 1. Abramowicz has suggested that it had a role to play in Swiatek's stunning loss at the hands of eventual gold medalist Zheng Qinwen in the women's singles semifinals at the Paris Olympics.

The Pole eventually had to settle for the bronze medal after defeating fellow losing semifinalist Anna Karolina Schmiedlova.

Swiatek was the overwhelming favorite to clinch the women's singles gold medal at this year's Games, particularly due to her achievements at Roland Garros over the years. Four of the Pole's five Major titles have come at the French Open, where she has now won three back-to-back crowns. Unfortunately, the World No. 1's hopes for gold came crashing down in the semifinals.

Zheng, who went on to become the first Chinese player to win Olympic gold in singles tennis, produced a stellar display against Swiatek to snap the Pole's 25-match winning streak.

The Chinese sensation put herself in the driving seat after comprehensively winning the first set 6-2. In the second though, Swiatek looked to be in total control as she raced to a 4-0 lead, but Zheng turned things around, aided by her decision to add variety to her game.

The World No. 1 struggled to predict when the Chinese would switch between playing aggressively from the baseline and hitting deft drop shots. Swiatek would win only one more game in the second set, while Zheng would win seven to end the Pole's Paris Olympics campaign.

Recently, Abramowicz, an integral member of Iga Swiatek's team, assessed the five-time Major winner's status in Poland. According to the iconic psychologist, the World No. 1's "national treasure" status creates significant pressure on Swiatek to deliver consistently, which tends to backfire at times, as it did in her opinion at the Paris Games.

"We have already talked about how some people call Iga a "national treasure". In a sense, this is taking away the athlete's autonomy and the chance todo something for themselves," Abramowicz told Rzeczpospolita Sport.

However, the 36-year-old admitted that such pressure was inevitable considering Iga Swiatek's great achievements since she burst on to the WTA Tour. Abramowicz concluded by saying that it's up to her and the rest of the five-time Grand Slam champion's team to help her in managing pressure situations.

"However, it is difficult to do anything about external expectations that grow with the level and scale of success. This is how the world works . We can only look for strategies to manage them and find ourselves," Abramowicz added.

Iga Swiatek says she would have shed tears for a week had she not achieved a third-place finish at the Paris Olympics

From left to right: Donna Vekic (Silver), Zheng Qinwen (Gold), Iga Swiatek (Bronze) (Source: Getty)

Iga Swiatek's frustrations at not having made the final were evident following her loss to Zheng in the semifinals. The Pole eventually turned tearful, later admitting to Clay that her semifinal loss made her cry for six long hours. The World No. 1 also added that if she ended up losing the bronze medal match as well, she would have cried for a week.

"I cried for six hours yesterday, if I hadn’t won (the bronze) I would have cried for a week. Being number one makes me feel I can handle everything, but this tournament showed me that’s not the case. This motivates me to work harder," Iga Swiatek said.

The Pole will now take a brief break having withdrawn from the 2024 National Bank Open in Toronto citing fatigue after a grueling few months. However, it shouldn't be long before she is back in action, as the buildup to the year's final Grand Slam, the US Open, begins.