COVID-19 Ends Team USA's Coco Gauff's Tokyo Olympics Dream

(Photo : Cynthiamcastro from Pixabay ) Coco Gauff will not compete at the Tokyo Olympics after testing positive for COVID-19 ahead of the Summer Games.

U.S. women's tennis player Coco Gauff has tested positive for COVID-19, forcing the 17-year-old star to pull out of the Tokyo Olympics. Gauff had been expected to lead Team USA in the Summer Games in the tennis events and was considered one of their main gold medal hopefuls.

Gauff broke the sad news on social media, where she wished the rest of Team USA luck on the Olympic stage. The Tokyo Games would have been Gauff's first appearance in the Olympics after notable performances in Grand Slam tournaments over the past few years.

COVID-19 ends Coco Gauff's Olympic dream

She reached the quarterfinals at Roland Garros earlier this year before making the fourth round at Wimbledon just this month. Both of those finishes were career-best showings for Gauff, and many expected her to carry that momentum into Tokyo. Sadly that wouldn't be the case, as the COVID-19 virus prevented another athlete from strutting her wares in the Olympic Games.

"I am so disappointed to share the news that I have tested positive for COVID and won't be able to play in the Olympic Games in Tokyo,'' Gauff released a statement via Twitter on Sunday. "It has always been a dream of mine to represent the USA at the Olympics, and I hope there will be many more chances for me to make this come true in the future,'' she later added.

The U.S. Tennis Association also released a statement on Sunday in response to Gauff's withdrawal, saying, "The entire USA Tennis Olympic contingent is heartbroken for Coco. We wish her the best as she deals with this unfortunate situation and hope to see her back on the courts very soon."

Tennis has been hit hard with a spate of withdrawals for the Tokyo Olympics, with Gauff as the latest big-name casualty. Among the players who will not go to Japan are tennis titans Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Serena Williams; as well as Victoria Azarenka, Angelique Kerber, Vasek Pospisil, Sofia Kenin, Dominic Thiem, Bianca Andreescu, Denis Shapovalov, Simona Halep, and Nick Kyrgios.

Much was expected from Gauff as this is the first Olympics in 25 years that Team USA will be without Serena Williams or Venus Williams. She had been expected to lead the 12-person Team USA squad in the women's singles division alongside Jessica Pegula, Alison Riske, and Jennifer Brady.

Related Article: Novak Djokovic To Compete at Tokyo Olympics; Golden Slam Still in Play

COVID-19 scare hits Olympic Village 

It is unclear at the moment whether Gauff has been vaccinated for COVID-19 and if she was already staying in the Olympic Village when she got the positive diagnosis. The news comes a day after Tokyo Olympic President Seiko Hashimoto announced that an organizer of the games staying at the Olympic Village had tested positive for COVID.

Apart from Gauff, two other athletes announced on Sunday that they got the virus. Team South Africa soccer players Thabiso Monyane and Kamohelo Mahlatsi were also said to have tested positive for COVID-19. A South African rugby coach and a video analyst were also infected, sparking fears that a virus outbreak might occur in the Olympic Village.

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