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Marketa Vondrousova has pulled out of the upcoming Paris Olympics, citing a hand injury. The 25-year-old won the silver medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Vondrousova was slated to be part of a star-studded Czech Republic tennis team for the Paris Olympics, which included Tomas Machac, Jakub Mensik, Barbora Krejcikova, Karolina Muchova, Katerina Siniakova, and Linda Noskova.
Vondrousova announced the news of her withdrawal on her Instagram handle. The 2023 Wimbledon champion said that she waited until the last moment to make a decision, adding that she would be supporting the entire Czech contingent. The 2023 Wimbledon victor declared she would divert her attention to the forthcoming hard court season.
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"I am very sorry, but for health reasons I am not participating in this year's Olympic Games in Paris. I was hoping until the last moment that it could go at least in doubles, but problems with my hand won't let me on the court. I am concentrating now to be fine at the US Open, I will keep my fingers crossed for all the Czech representatives in France from a distance. Hopefully soon on the court (translated from Google Transate)," Vondrousova wrote.
Vondrousova was scheduled to play singles as well as doubles, partnering with Karolina Muchova.
The former World No. 6 would have been a defending runner-up in Paris, having won the silver medal in the previous edition. She defeated Kiki Bertens, Mihaela Buzărnescu, and Naomi Osaka in the first, second and third rounds, respectively.
In the quarterfinals, Paula Badosa's mid-match retirement propelled the Czech into the semifinals. where she defeated Elina Svitolina to set up a final match with Belinda Bencic. The Swiss won the gold medal, while Vondrousova had to settle for a silver.
Marketa Vondrousova's unfortunate injuries
As of late, Marketa Vondrousova has been plagued with quite a few injuries. Right before her Wimbledon title defense, she fell during her second round at the Ecotrans Ladies Open against Anna Kalinskaya. This fall resulted in a hip injury that forced her to retire mid-match.
She lost in the first round at Wimbledon 2024 against Jessica Bouzas Maneiro. Although she downplayed any injury concerns, she stated in the press conference that she moved slower as she was scared of injuring herself further.
"Not really. I think I was a bit slower maybe. I was a bit scared," she said during the post-match press conference.
Marketa Vondrousova became only the second women's Wimbledon defending champion to lose in the first round after Steffi Graf lost to Lori McNeil in 1994.
