Swiatek Keeps Olympics Race Lead Intact Despite Miami Shock Defeat

With just two months of the Olympics race remaining, who is stopping Iga Swiatek from finishing as the leader?

The answer to that question will be answered on the European clay swing, where the Pole has dominated in recent years, winning three of the past four French Opens.

Swiatek lost in the round of 16 in her most recent tournament, the Miami Open. She was overpowered by Ekaterina Alexandrova, who ended her bid to win the Sunshine Double for a second time and joining Steffi Graf for that prestigious achievement.

But her closest rivals couldn't take advantage of that mishap. Swiatek left Florida with 7,500 points, establishing daylight between herself and previous leader Coco Gauff, who is in second place with 6,590 points.

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Aryna Sabalenka's inconsistent form since winning the Australian Open continued as she lost in the third round in Miami. She stays in third place. For the second successive year, Elena Rybakina was runner-up at the Miami Open.

The Kazakh keeps her place in fourth spot, ahead of Jessica Pegula, one of many Americans in the Top 56 - the cut-off entry for the Olympics. Marketa Vondrousova was forced to withdraw from Indian Wells and Miami after her grandfather's passing.

But despite her absence, the Tokyo silver medalist keeps her spot in the Top 10, which includes Maria Sakkari, Ons Jabeur, and Jelena Ostapenko. China's Qinwen Zheng has already qualified courtesy of winning the Asian Games last year.

Daria Kasatkina, Jasmine Paolini, Ekaterina Alexandrova, and Liudmila Samsonova are among the players knocking on the Top 10 door. The newly crowned Miami Open champion, Danielle Collins, is also in contention to qualify.

As it stands, Collins is the fourth-best American woman in the race, which would be sufficient to earn her a spot in the singles draw. It will be a tight finish, with Madison Keys and Emma Navarro also jostling for a place to join Gauff and Pegula, who are nailed on for the top two spots among Americans.

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2024 Women's Olympics Race as of April 1st, 2024: