Swiatek’s Paris Olympic dreams pivot to bronze medal after semifinal loss

After her stunning semifinal loss to Zheng Qinwen, Iga Swiatek found herself in an alternative universe — on the wrong side of a match score at Roland Garros.

Jaw set, eyes and face red, she conceded later it was not her best effort.

“It’s the result of the match. So I just messed up,” Swiatek told Eurosport Poland afterward. “I just had a hole in my backhand. It happens rarely because it is usually my most solid strike.

“I was not technically well-positioned because of the stress and the fact that I played my games day by day. We didn’t have time to adjust that and work on that. I know that’s not the justification, but I tried to correct that during the match. Today it didn’t work at all.”

But Swiatek can make up for some of that disappointment Friday.

Despite perceptions to the contrary, Swiatek’s Olympic dreams did not die with that loss to Zheng. The 23-year-old from Poland still has a chance to win a medal in Paris — it’s just a different color than the one she imagined.

On Friday the World No.1 takes on Anna Karolina Schmiedlova of Slovakia. To the victor goes the bronze medal, a coveted piece of hardware sure to be cherished forever.

For context, here are the past three bronze medalists in women’s singles: Victoria Azarenka (2012), Petra Kvitova (2016), Elina Svitolina (2020). Formidable players across the board.

Of that trio, only Azarenka knows what it’s like to be the World No.1 and top seed at an Olympics, only to settle for bronze. She lost to eventual champion Serena Williams in the semifinals.

“It was probably one of the toughest matches for me to play, mentally,” Azarenka told WTA Insider after advancing to the quarterfinals of the Mubadala Citi DC Open. “It’s so uncommon for us to lose a singles match and go back and play the very next day. You do it when you play doubles and you would think it would not be that different, but it’s so, so different because that emotional letdown happens.”

Once Azarenka was able to put her disappointment aside, it turns out, she was as happy as a clam to walk away with a medal.

“I remember I played against Maria Kirilenko and when I won it, I was for sure the happiest for sure on the podium,” Azarenka said. “The bronze for me is so much better than silver. It has to be gold or bronze. Silver, sorry, bye bye. I don’t like it.

“Emotionally it’s very difficult. But the reward and the feeling of getting it was just beyond.”

Before the tournament began at Roland Garros, Swiatek was asked what it would mean to win a medal.

“It would mean, obviously, a lot,” she answered. “I’ll really work hard to achieve that.”

It’s still within her grasp. Swiatek is particularly motivated to do something that eluded her father Tomasz, who rowed in the 1988 Olympics for Poland. His boat in the men’s quadruple sculls event failed to make the final but won the “B” final for seventh place.

Swiatek, who saw several streaks ended in the 6-2, 7-5 loss to Zheng, is essentially playing a home game in Paris. She’s 39-3 at the Paris venue and has won 25 of her past 26 matches. She also won 23 of her past 24 matches on clay this year.

If she can put her heartbreak aside quickly, Swiatek will be the heavy favorite on Friday. It will be the first meeting between Swiatek and Schmiedlova. The Slovakian has one Top 5 win in her career, which she tallied just this week. She paved her way to the medal rounds by defeating No.5 Jasmine Paolini in the Round of 16 before ousting Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova in the quarterfinals.