Iga Swiatek wins a bronze at the 2024 Olympics for Poland’s first tennis medal at any Summer Games

PARIS (AP) — Iga Swiatek dabbed at her eyes with a white towel while sitting on her sideline chair at the 2024 Olympics after a lickety-split, clean-as-can-be win Friday that earned a bronze for Poland’s first tennis medal at any Summer Games.

Sure, she beat Anna Karolina Schmiedlova of Slovakia 6-2, 6-1 in 59 minutes on Friday, but make no mistake: These were not purely tears of joy.

They were, at least in part, remnants of the disappointment — devastation, really — the No. 1-ranked Swiatek felt after a poor performance a day prior cost her a shot at what she really wanted, what she kind of figured she would head home with: gold. She’s a perfectionist, for one thing, and someone who, frankly, rarely loses anywhere, least of all on the red clay at Roland Garros, the site of her four French Open titles and home to Olympic tennis this year.

“After the match, I was pretty confused, because I still feel like I lost yesterday, and that was kind of a huge loss,” Swiatek said. “On the other hand, I won today … so I should be proud of that. There’s like a lot of mixed emotions and still is.”

Swiatek played much more cleanly than she did Thursday in a straight-set semifinal loss to Zheng Qinwen. That result ended Swiatek’s 25-match unbeaten streak at Roland Garros, which includes three championships in a row at the French Open.

Zheng faces Donna Vekic in the women’s final on Saturday.

Swiatek called the semifinal exit “one of the toughest losses I probably ever had in my career” and said she wept for six hours afterward.

“It was like,” she said, “somebody really broke my heart.”

Why?

Because, Swiatek explained, “the tension and the stress” at the Olympics was overwhelming, particularly the sense that she needed to succeed for her country and not just for herself.

“I’ve never felt something like it, even (at) Grand Slams,” she said. “It wasn’t easy.”

A chat with her sports psychologist, Dara Abramowicz, helped Swiatek recalibrate and regroup. That allowed her to play more freely against Schmiedlova.

The No. 1-ranked Swiatek was a popular pick to leave these Games with gold, in large part because of her dominance in Paris. That’s not happening. The bad feelings from the loss will linger, Swiatek conceded, but she hopes for not too long.

She’s looking forward to getting a chance to enjoy the spectacle of the Olympics before leaving town.

“I’m going to just remember winning the bronze medal,” she said. She paused, and added: “I hope so. I guess.”

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AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games