Coco Gauff makes history after being announced as USA Olympic flag bearer
Coco Gauff has been announced as the Paris Olympics flag bearer for the United States of America, making her the youngest person to do this at just 20-years-old.
Gauff will be making her Olympics debut later this week, after being forced to miss the Tokyo Games following contracting Covid-19.
And the US Open champion will be kicking her Olympics campaign off in style at the opening ceremony, carrying the flag alongside basketball legend Lebron James.
The reaction says it all… #ParisOlympics pic.twitter.com/0diGEub75N
— Team USA (@TeamUSA) July 24, 2024
Both Gauff and James were voted for by their fellow USA athletes to fulfill the role, with the former also becoming the first American tennis player to receive the honour.
Reacting to the news on social media, Gauff said, “I just want to say thank you to my fellow team usa olympians/athletes for voting and choosing me for this incredible honor to be the flag bearer for the opening ceremony. Thank you so much. I am incredibly honored.”
I just want to say thank you to my fellow team usa olympians/athletes for voting and choosing me for this incredible honor to be the flag bearer for the opening ceremony ❤️. Thank you so much. I am incredibly honored. 🥹🇺🇸
— Coco Gauff (@CocoGauff) July 24, 2024
In her Olympics debut Gauff will be competing in all three tennis events, singles, doubles with Jessica Pegula and mixed doubles with Taylor Fritz.
But first Gauff will fulfill the honour of carrying her nation’s flag on Friday 26th July, with the tennis events getting underway on Saturday.
Inside the baseline…
For any athlete at the Olympic Games, it must be such an honour and privilege to carry the flag of your nation in front of the world at the biggest sporting event. And it probably feels an even greater achievement for an American, who have the biggest team at the Games and so many decorated sportspeople to contend with. Coco Gauff is the perfect person to do this task though, as she is a Grand Slam champion and carries herself so well on and off the court – it is easy to forget that she is still only 20-years-old!
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