END GUN VIOLENCE
Coco pens plea for peace on TV after sealing final spot
COCO GAUFF used the “platform” of reaching her first Grand Slam final by writing, “Peace. End Gun Violence” on a courtside TV camera. And the American teenager said her father, Corey, has told her she could “change the world with my racquet”.
Gauff, who shot to fame at Wimbledon aged 15, beat Italian Martina Trevisan 6-3 6-1 to set up a final showdown with world No.1 Iga Swiatek tomorrow.
The 18-year-old is the youngest player to reach a Major final since Maria Sharapova at Wimbledon in 2004. But she is old enough to have a social conscience and voice her political opinions.
Another shooting this week in Tulsa followed the murder of 19 children and two teachers in a Texas school last week, and Gauff said: “For me it is important to use the platform I have.
“It has been going on for years in the US and I wanted to bring attention to it. I know how many people are watching that match so maybe some global attention to what is going on in the US.
“We definitely need some change and reform regarding that aspect.
“My team and my parents encourage me to write that.
Since I was young, my dad told me I could change the world with my racquet. He didn’t mean that by just playing tennis. He meant speaking out on issues like this.
“The first thing my dad said to me after I got off court was, ‘I’m proud of you and I love what you wrote on the camera.’
“It just felt right in that moment. I woke up this morning and
I saw there was another shooting and I think it’s just crazy. Hopefully it gets into the heads of people in office to change things.”
Gauff, who only graduated from high school just before the tournament, cited LeBron James, Serena Williams, Billie Jean King, Colin Kaepernick and Naomi Osaka as role models in speaking out. She addressed a Black Lives Matter rally in 2020 and admitted: “People always say, ‘Oh, sports and politics should stay separate’. And I say, ‘Yes, but also at the same time I’m a human before I’m a tennis player.’” And she revealed the extra motivation for her anti-gun protest – the murder of 17 students at Parkland high school in her home state of Florida in 2018.
“For me, it’s close to home,” she added. “I had some friends that were a part of the Parkland shooting. I remember watching that whole experience pretty much first hand, having friends go through that.
“Luckily they were able to make it out of it. I just think it’s crazy, I think I was maybe 14 or 13 when that happened, and still nothing has changed.”
Favourite Swiatek (left) extended her winning streak to 34 matches by beating Daria Kasatkina 6-2 6-1 in just 64 minutes.
Tournament organiser Amelie Mauresmo has apologised for saying only one women’s match was staged in the French Open night sessions because men’s tennis has “more appeal”.
Andy Murray’s ex-coach said: “I want to say sorry to the players that really felt bad about what I said.”