Growing list of high-ranked tennis players plan to skip Olympics
PARIS— Mike Bryan panicked a bit, understandably, when he received a phone call about the burglar alarm sounding at his home back in the U.S. while he was at the French Open.
“The first thing I thought about is: ‘Where’s the gold medal? I don’t think my wife hid it in the sock drawer,’ ” half of the most successful doubles team in tennis history recounted with a laugh. “And it was still there. Thank God. If the house burned down, I’d probably try to save some pictures, but otherwise, the gold is the first thing you’d run for. Can’t replace that.”
For all of his duo’s records — 16 Grand Slam doubles championships, more than 100 tournament titles, more than 435 weeks at No.1— there
“I’m a little surprised there are some big names skipping it.” MIKE BRYAN TENNIS PLAYER
is nothing Bryan cherishes more than the gold medal he and twin brother Bob won at the 2012 London Olympics.
Which is why he would never miss a chance for another medal — something six of the top 25 men in the ATP singles rankings will do by sitting out the Rio Games.
“It’s playing for your country. It’s playing for the glory of the Olympics,” Bryan said. “I’m a little surprised there are some big names skipping it.”
He wasn’t talking about two-time NBA MVP Stephen Curry or Rory McIlroy, the four-time major golf champion who announced Wednesday that he wouldn’t go to Rio because of concerns about the Zika virus.
No one of their level of stardom withdrew from the Olympic tennis event, but there is a growing group of absentees, including Dominic Thiem, a 19-year-old rising star from Austria who is ranked No. 8, reached his first major semifinal at Roland Garros this month, and beat Roger Federer on grass just last week.
Also staying away: the top American man, John Isner, who is ranked 17th; Australia’s two best players, No. 18 Nick Kyrgios and No. 19 Bernard Tomic; No. 21 Feliciano Lopez of Spain and No. 24 Kevin Anderson of South Africa.
“I would say (it’s been) 70 to 80 per cent, probably, negative feedback I have received,” said Isner, who competed at the 2012 Games. “The other 20 per cent . . . recognized my feelings on it. I have been told (it’s) ‘unpatriotic.’ ”
Noting that the field isn’t finalized, WTA CEO Steve Simon said Wednesday he is not aware of any female tennis players pulling out of Rio.
“We haven’t heard it yet,” Simon said. “To be open and honest, we could hear that from some players.”
Isner wants tennis players to earn ranking points at the Olympics. Indeed, he thought the points offered in London four years ago weren’t enough.
But unlike at the past four Summer Games, players won’t get boosts to their ranking in Rio, the way they can at tournaments happening elsewhere at the same time.
Other tennis-specific explanations for bypassing Brazil include the chance to collect appearance money at other events, and the difficult prospect of earning a medal when the field features the No. 1-ranked Djokovic, defending gold medallist Andy Murray,17-time major champion Federer and, if he recovers from a left wrist injury, 2008 gold medallist Rafael Nadal.
To some in tennis, none of those considerations matter.
The Olympics are the Olympics, and they say there’s no way they’d pass up a chance to go.
As 26th-ranked Jack Sock of the U.S. put it: “That’s kind of (on) the bucket list when you’re a kid.”