Novak Djokovic targeting gold medal at Paris 2024 Olympics and set to be allowed to play at Italian Open in May
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Updated 18/02/2022 at 09:38 GMT
Novak Djokovic has said that an Olympic medal is a "big wish" after missing out at Tokyo 2020 to end his hopes of completing the Golden Slam. The Serbian said earlier this week that he is willing to miss Grand Slams if vaccination is required, but his hopes of playing in the traditional French Open warm-up on the clay courts of Rome were boosted by comments from an Italian government minister.
Novak Djokovic of Team Serbia reacts after a point during his Men's Singles Bronze Medal match against Pablo Carreno Busta of Team Spain on day eight of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Ariake Tennis Park on July 31, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan
Image credit: Getty Images
Novak Djokovic has described an Olympic gold medal as a “big wish” as the Serbian targets a tilt at Paris 2024.
The Serbian took a bronze medal at his first Games in Beijing in 2008, but has since failed to finish on the podium.
Djokovic had hoped to keep his hopes of completing the Golden Slam - winning all four Grand Slam singles titles and Olympic gold in a single year - alive with victory in Tokyo last summer, but lost to Alexander Zverev in the semi-finals, before being beaten to bronze by Pablo Carreno Busta.
Tokyo 2020 came at the end of a hectic summer, with Djokovic winning both the French Open and Wimbledon and looking a little way below peak fitness come the competition in Japan.
And the 34-year-old hopes to have another shot in Paris, where the tennis events will be held on the Roland-Garros clay courts with which he is well acquainted.
“An Olympic medal, especially gold, is always a big wish,” Djokovic told Radio Television of Serbia as he prepares to return to competitive tennis next week. “Unfortunately, I didn’t have a chance to fight for it in the past.
“I plan to be in Paris in 2024.
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“I rewound my match with Zverev in Tokyo many times, trying to figure out what went wrong. I played superbly up to that point, but I did feel I was running on fumes, both mentally and physically.”
20-time Grand Slam champion Djokovic is likely to be allowed to play in the 2022 Italian Open despite his unvaccinated status.
He missed out on the chance to defend his Australian Open crown in January after his visa was revoked.
Djokovic had earned a medical exemption to play in the Melbourne event as an unvaccinated player having tested positive for Covid-19 in December.
Strict rules in Italy mean that only vaccinated individuals are allowed to enter sporting arenas, which would seemingly have ruled Djokovic out of the Masters event in May.
However a government minister has now clarified that the 34-year-old could be allowed to compete, with the Italian Open to be held on the open air clay courts of Foro Italico.
“If [Novak] Djokovic wants to come and play in Rome he can do it,” Valentina Vezzali, Italy’s cabinet undersecretary for sport, said.
“[Tennis is] an outdoor sport and the tighter green pass is not required.
“Perhaps Djokovic will most likely not be allowed in a hotel or a restaurant, but if he wants to play he can play.”
Former Olympic fencer Vezzali added that she did not expect a Covid-19 vaccine mandate to be in place in May.
Of greater doubt, seemingly, will be Djokovic’s participation in the French Open, which begins a week after the Italian Open ends on 15 May.
The Serbian will hope to have the chance to defend his title but France has recently adopted vaccine passports, and under the current rules Djokovic would be unable to play.
In an interview with the BBC released earlier this week, Djokovic said he was prepared to miss the French Open and other Grand Slams over his stance on the vaccine.
The Serbian is eyeing a return to Australia, though, despite his deportation earlier this year.
“I will always remember all the nice things that have happened to me in Melbourne,” Djokovic said. “Despite all this, I have a great connection with Australia. Results that I have had in Melbourne in the past show you how I feel when I go there.
“Everything that has happened this year was totally unexpected. It will be hard to forget, but I want to come back to Australia in the future and to play at the Rod Laver Arena again.”
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The Olympic Games will return with Paris 2024, live on Eurosport and discovery+.
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