Frances Tiafoe will not be competing at the 2024 Paris Olympics despite securing qualification for the men's singles tournament and has explained why.
The Olympic Games are scheduled to commence next month, with tennis taking center stage between July 27th and August 4th. In singles, a total of 64 men and women will battle to win one of the gold, silver, and bronze medals for their respective countries.
The USA, one of the countries with the highest number of representatives in tennis, officially announced the list of players who will compete in Paris next month. The tournament will be played on the clay courts of Roland Garros.
The big surprise was the omission of Frances Tiafoe and Madison Keys, who had both secured qualification based on their ATP and WTA rankings. The 26-year-old Tiafoe was all set to take up Ben Shelton's spot after the young lefty made himself unavailable for selection despite qualifying.
However, Tiafoe revealed to British journalist James Gray that he didn't want to play on clay and chose to withdraw from his second Olympics participation. Therefore, the former World No. 10 will focus on the North American hard-court swing, which begins in late July.
"It's insignificant to what I'm trying to do going through to the US Open. I love my country, but I think I gotta think about myself."
Former US Open finalist Keys is another player whose goals this season don't entail playing at the Olympic Games. Her absence will give 22-year-old Emma Navarro the chance to showcase her burgeoning talent in her first Olympics.
The United States Tennis Association (USTA) has named Taylor Frtiz, Tommy Paul, Christopher Eubanks, and Marcos Giron among the players who will compete in the men's singles tournament.
The women will comprise Coco Gauff, Jessica Pegula, Danielle Collins, Emma Navarro, and double No. 11 Desirae Krawczyk.