Swiatek Opens Up About Period When She Was Going 'The Wrong Path' After Initial Fame

| by Zachary Wimer

Like many before her, Iga Swiatek had to get used to the fame after breaking out as a young tennis player, and initially, she didn't handle it well.

The Polish player is both a famous and avid user of social media, even though she often talks about a conscious effort when she tries to avoid that. When she first got her big break with the pandemic Roland Garros triumph, Swiatek found fame.

At first, she found it rather interesting and spent a lot of time on social media as her following grew rapidly, as well as with different business endeavors.

That wasn't very good because her team had to push her back to the tennis courts as her interest lay elsewhere. She openly talked about it recently ahead of the 2024 Dubai Championships, calling it a 'wrong path,' but since then, she has been able to find a much better balance.

She doesn't use social media during events, keeping herself focused on the goal, which is to win the next match. At the Qatar Open, she did that well, winning her third consecutive trophy at the event.

Swiatek Admits She 'Thought She Was Going To Lose In Second Round' Before Doha Triumph
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"I would say I'm doing good job, like, separating that. I don't use really social media during the tournaments. I just post my stuff and that's all. I remember after I won my first Roland Garros, like two months I really was going the wrong path."

"The practices weren't a priority in my schedule, in my head, you know? I remember my team had to kind of push me right back on the right path. I think, yeah, social media and Internet can distract you, and this business side of sport, if you don't balance it well."

It's an interesting admission by Swiatek, and it's certainly not unique to her. We've heard it before. Alex de Minaur famously said that he spends way too much time on social media, and Coco Gauff once admitted to spending hours on TikTok as well.

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