Coco Gauff's Positive COVID Test Means No Olympics

It's not clear whether tennis star, 17, is vaccinated

By Evann Gastaldo, Newser Staff

Posted Jul 19, 2021 12:04 AM CDT
Updated Jul 19, 2021 1:33 AM CDT

Copied

Coco Gauff Tests Positive for COVID, Will Miss Olympics — Coco Gauff of the US plays against Russia's Veronika Kudermetova and Elena Vesnina during the women's doubles third round match on day eight of the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Tuesday, July 6, 2021. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali)

Teen tennis phenom Cori "Coco" Gauff will have to sit out the Tokyo Olympics after testing positive for COVID-19. Gauff, 17, said in a statement posted to Twitter on Sunday that she is "so disappointed." "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 wrote. Gauff was originally to lead the 12-person group in the Games starting Friday, NPR reports.

"We wish her the best as she deals with this unfortunate situation and hope to see her back on the courts very soon. We know Coco will join all of us in rooting on the other Team USA members who will be traveling to Japan and competing in the coming days," the US Tennis Association said in a statement, per ESPN. It's not clear whether Gauff is vaccinated. This will be the first Olympics in 25 years where neither Venus nor Serena Williams will be playing. (Also Sunday, the first athletes tested positive in Olympic Village.)

Report an error