Djokovic, Nadal, Murray, Swiatek, Gauff on Olympics entry lists
LONDON — Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray all were included on the entry list for tennis at the Paris Olympics released by the International Tennis Federation on Thursday, as was Daniil Medvedev, who will be competing as a neutral athlete rather than representing Russia because of that country’s ongoing war in Ukraine.
Djokovic (Serbia) and Murray (Britain) are both 37 and Nadal (Spain) is 38, and all own multiple Grand Slam titles. Djokovic holds a men’s-record 24 major trophies, but he has never won a gold medal at the Olympics.
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Nadal, next on the men’s Slam list with 22, won golds in singles in 2008 and doubles in 2016. He skipped Wimbledon, which is currently being played, to prepare for the Olympics.
Murray won three major championships and is the only tennis player with consecutive singles gold medals at the Summer Games. He has said he plans to retire after the Paris Olympics, which will hold tennis matches from July 27 to Aug. 4 on the clay courts at Roland Garros, the site of the French Open — where Nadal is a 14-time champ.
The leading women on the entry list are No. 1 Iga Swiatek (Poland), No. 2 Coco Gauff (United States) and No. 4 Elena Rybakina (Kazakhstan). No. 3 Aryna Sabalenka decided not to go to the Olympics; her nation, Belarus, aided Russia in its invasion of Ukraine, so she would have competed as a neutral athlete like Medvedev.
Swiatek is a five-time Grand Slam champion — including at the French Open in four of the past five years — and Gauff and Rybakina have won one major apiece. Gauff made the U.S. team for the Tokyo Games three years ago, but she did not go because she tested positive for COVID-19.
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There are 64-player draws for women’s and men’s singles and 32 teams each in women’s and men’s doubles. The 16 entries for mixed doubles will be determined July 24. The draw to determine the brackets will be in Paris on July 25.
Among the other players announced Thursday are three-time major champion Carlos Alcaraz — who will play doubles alongside Nadal for Spain — No. 1 Jannik Sinner (Italy), Tokyo Olympics gold medalist Alexander Zverev (Germany), 2008 doubles gold medalist Stan Wawrinka (Switzerland), four-time Grand Slam winner Naomi Osaka (Japan), 2019 US Open champion Bianca Andreescu (Canada) and 2018 Australian Open champion Caroline Wozniacki (Denmark).
Osaka lit the cauldron at the Tokyo Olympics.
Lebanon will make its debut in Olympic tennis, with Benjamin Hassan entered in singles and also partnering with Hady Habib in doubles
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Andy Murray’s legacy at Wimbledon, and in British tennis

Two-time champion Andy Murray has said this will be his last Wimbledon appearance. EPA/ADAM VAUGHAN
Simon Cambers
Jul 4, 2024, 05:58 PM ET
WIMBLEDON, England — Andy Murray left the court briefly, moments after his last-ever men’s doubles match on Thursday. When he returned, he gave his brother, Jamie, a long, warm hug. And the crowd, already on its feet, erupted, moved by the emotions of the two brothers, and jubilant for a man who has touched a nation.
It was the only time the brothers will ever play doubles together at the All England Club — the pair were defeated by Rinky Hijikata and John Peers. In the next few days, Murray, 37, will play his last-ever match at Wimbledon as a professional. After pulling out of singles because he wasn’t ready after recent back surgery, Murray has opted to play mixed doubles with Emma Raducanu, in addition to doubles with Jamie.
His last hurrah will come at the Olympics in Paris later this month, but the Scot’s Wimbledon career is almost at an end. He leaves a void that will take some filling, if it’s even possible. He also leaves behind a country that has changed the way it thinks about tennis because of him.
On Thursday, before a montage was shown about his career in which Roger Federer, Venus Williams, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal expressed their respect, Murray tried to hold it together. It was not easy when he saw former BBC presenter Sue Barker, who came out of retirement to interview him on court.
“It was obviously really special,” Murray said about playing with Jamie. “We never got the chance to do it before. It was a bit of a race against time to get out here. Physically it wasn’t easy, but I’m glad we were able to do this one time together.”
After making his debut in 2005 as a gangly 18-year-old, Murray made history in 2013 when he became the first British man to win Wimbledon in 77 years. He repeated the feat three years later. In all, he won 46 titles including three Grand Slams — his first came at the US Open in 2012. He earned back-to-back Olympic gold medals in 2012 and 2016, was ranked world No. 1 for 41 weeks, and helped Britain win the Davis Cup in 2015.
In 2012, Murray became the first British man to win the Olympic gold medal in men’s singles since 1908. Photo credit should read LEON NEAL/AFP/GettyImages
Through his titles alone, secured in surely the greatest era of men’s tennis with Djokovic, Nadal and Federer dominant like no trio before them, Murray has solidified his place in history. But whether he knows it or not, he will leave tennis having also changed a nation’s mindset. Until Murray, Britain had some good players, but while Tim Henman reached four Wimbledon semifinals, no one really thought he could win.
In a country starved of success in tennis, Murray made the impossible possible. And he changed the perception of tennis in Britain, where it had been considered a sport for elites.
Murray wore his heart on his sleeve and brought people along for the ride. Fans lived through his matches as if they were on court themselves. There was always drama, it was never an easy ride, and many times, Murray shouted and scowled on court. But in time, the public learned how hard he was working, how he was always willing to put his body through the ringer one more time, to go the extra mile in search of the 1 percent that might make the difference.
It’s still relatively expensive to play tennis in the U.K. There is still a lot of work to be done to make it more accessible, and participation has plateaued in recent years. But young people in Britain want to play tennis because Andy Murray made it cool. They saw what he did, what he said and how he has gone about his life — and not only did they want to emulate him, they believe they can. Not many people, in any sport, can say that.
“I wouldn’t be here without Andy,” British No. 1 Jack Draper said after his first-round win. “He’s an incredible guy off the court, so funny, so genuine, one-of-a-kind and what a competitor, what a champion. Thank you very much.”
2021 US Open champion Raducanu echoed those thoughts. “When I think of Wimbledon, I think of Andy,” she said. “Growing up, that was the generation, the hero I would look up to.”
The effusive words of his peers in recent days show the respect in which Murray has been held. “His will to push and see how far he can go, even with an artificial hip, is something that is just inspiring but also serves as a great example I think to a lot of the athletes, younger ones that start to complain about this and that,” 24-time major champion Novak Djokovic said on Tuesday. “He has left an incredible mark on and off the court.”
Andy Murray played doubles with his brother, Jamie, on Thursday, losing to John Peers and Rinky Hijikata of Australia. EPA/ADAM VAUGHAN
Grigor Dimitrov said Murray should be regarded as one of the best players in history. “He won how many tournaments, 46? Three Slams, Olympics back to back,” said Dimitrov. “I always say stats don’t really matter, but it’s a lot, and what he’s been able to do to come back with the surgeries and all that, that’s a career.”
Coco Gauff hailed his fighting spirit and highlighted his impact in promoting the women’s game.
“I just saw a video on TikTok which always makes its rounds about [Murray] correcting reporters about statistics,” she said. “It’s something that as a female player, you’ll see a lot where people will be, like, ‘He’s the first player to do this.’ It’s like, well, Serena and Venus did it, another player did it ages ago. [Or] ‘the first American’ … I did it, just did it. I do appreciate him. Not only him but also his mother for everything they’ve done for equality for women’s sports.”
Judy Murray, Andy’s mother, was his first coach, a constant source of support throughout his career and a coach and leader in her own right, especially through her programs for young girls.
Despite the injuries in recent years, Murray has continued to give everything in search of the goodbye he wanted, and clearly deserves. He didn’t get it in singles, his body not quite there, but the way he was heralded in doubles with his brother should leave him in no doubt about how the country feels.
And those who have come behind, such as Draper, who beat Carlos Alcaraz at Queen’s Club and who was seeded at a major for the first time, are able to play without the pressure Murray faced. The obstacles to success have been cleared. A country now believes in tennis and thinks like champions. That’s his legacy
