Novak Djokovic finally ended his long wait for first-ever Olympic gold by beating the world no.3 Carlos Alcaraz in the men's singles final on Sunday, August 4. The tennis legend defeated the young Spanish star 7-6, 7-6 in one of the most thrilling finals in the Olympics history to win a gold after 16 years.
With his first Olympic gold, he made the list of players to make the 'Career Golden Slam', a term used to describe players who have won all four grand slam titles and an Olympic gold, in singles history. Both Djokovic and Alcaraz were playing in their first-ever final at the Olympics and entertained fans with a thriller at the iconic Philippe-Chatrier.
Djokovic, 37, was the oldest finalist and the 21-year-old Carlos Alcaraz was the youngest to play the men's singles final in Olympics history. Djokovic became the oldest tennis player to win an Olympic gold since 1988 and the oldest in the men's singles events.
With an Olympic gold and 24 grand slam titles in singles, the Serbian star now has won everything he can in tennis. The German legend Steffi Graf famously claimed four grand slam titles and an Olympic gold in 1988 to become the first player to earn a Golden Slam title.
Andre Agassi (1999), Rafael Nadal (2010) and Serena Williams (2012) are the remaining three legends to win all grand slam titles and an Olympic gold. Serena Williams is the only tennis player to make Career Golden Slam in both singles and doubles. Carlos Alcaraz lacks an Australian Open and Olympic gold to join the above legends but four grand slam titles at the age of 21 predict a place for him.
Novak Djokovic's titles and career achievement
- Olympic Gold - 1
- Olympic Medals - 2
- Australian Open - 10
- Wimbledon - 7
- US Open - 4
- French Open - 3
- ATP Finals - 7
- ATP Titles - 98
- Year-end no.1 - 8
- Weeks at no.1 - 428 (record)
Djokovic also ended his wait for a first title in the 2024 season after some heartbreaks in the Australian Open and most recently in the Wimbledon final. He is chasing a record-breaking 25th grand slam title and will be next seen in the action at the Cincinnati Open, the ATP 1000 event, to prepare for the US Open 2024 starting on August 26.
