"I got the chills up there" - When 16-year-old Jennifer Capriati opened up on beating Steffi Graf to win the Olympic gold
Jennifer Capriati beat Steffi Graf to win the gold medal at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona.
Capriati, who was only 16 at the time, was seeded third in the tournament. She reached the final following wins over Anke Huber and Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, in the quarterfinals and semifinals respectively.
The American faced reigning champion Steffi Graf in the final and beat her 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 to win the gold medal. After the match, Jennifer Capriati stated that she "got the chills" while standing on the podium.
"It's really unbelievable. I got a chance to do what so many athletes have done, I got to stand up there (on the gold medal platform). I got the chills up there," the then teenager said.
Capriati added that the match was one of her "greatest."
"I think this is definitely one of my greatest matches. In terms of fighting for everything, running down and really grinding it, I just played one of my best matches. This one is definitely up there," she said.
The victory was Capriati's first over Graf in five matches. The American claimed it was a "big step" for her as it proved she could beat the best player in the world.
"I've never beaten her and I've beaten all the other top players. It's a big step for me, proving to myself I can beat them. It means a lot because this is the first time," Capriati said.
Steffi Graf said after the match that while she was disappointed, Capriati deserved the win. The German added that the young American's consistency and patience were critical to the result.
"It's definitely disappointing. But there are times when I felt much worse after a loss, but I didn't feel as bad today because she definitely deserved to win. I still felt good standing up there. I think she was very steady from the baseline. She played very consistently and that was her strength today. She played a patient game, which I wasn't really," Graf said.
Jennifer Capriati never won another match against Steffi Graf
The 1992 Olympic gold medal match turned out to be the only time Jennifer Capriati beat Steffi Graf. The closest she came again was in the final of the 1993 Canadian Open, with the score reading 6-1, 0-6, 6-3 in favor of the German.
The last meeting between the pair came in the second round of the 1999 Miami Open, with Graf winning 6-0, 6-1.
Graf ended up dominating their head-to-head record (10-1).