Sloane Stephens: “Olympics is no money, just pride; If you don't make it, you still have an opportunity to play another tournament and make money”
Sloane Stephens spoke about her ambitions for the 2024 Paris Olympics after defeating Angelique Kerber in the first round of the Miami Open on Wednesday, March 20.
Stephens broke Kerber four times during the match and secured 70% of the points on her first serve. In total, she won 68 points to upend the German 6-2, 6-3 in just 71 minutes.
After the match, the American sat down in the press room and fielded numerous media questions, including a couple on the forthcoming Paris Games. When asked about the chances of her participation in the quadrennial event, she highlighted the aspect of no prize money.
"The Olympics is no money, just pride. If you don't make it, you still have an opportunity to go and play another tournament and make money and continue. So that's not too bad. But obviously I have played an Olympics before, super grateful to have played in Rio. It was an amazing experience," she said.
Representing the United States at the 2016 Rio Olympics, Stephens lost to Canada's Eugenie Bouchard in the opening round of the singles event.
Later in her response, Stephens said she would be happy to qualify for the Olympics again and would follow it on TV even if she didn't make the cut herself.
"If I made it again, obviously that would be super special and I'd be super excited, but again, there is a lot of tennis left to be played and a lot of tournaments left to be played and a full clay season ahead of us. Obviously, just going to try to do my best to make it. If not, I'll be watching on TV," Sloane Stephens added.
Sloane Stephens competing with Coco Gauff, Jessica Pegula, Madison Keys and Emma Navarro for Olympics spot
Sloane Stephens, a former World No. 3, is currently ranked 41st on the women's tour. To improve her chances of qualifying for the Olympics 2024, Stephens would want to get as close as possible to the Top 20 before June 10, 2024 — the official deadline for qualifications based on rankings.
As things stand, Stephens has Coco Gauff (3), Jessica Pegula (5), Madison Keys (18), and Emma Navarro (20) ahead of her among Americans actively competing on the tour. A maximum of four women's players can represent the USA in the singles event in Paris.
During her press conference at the Miami Open on Wednesday, Sloane Stephens weighed in on the intense competition for a spot in the national team for the Olympics.
"When the Olympic year comes around, we have, again, playing for the US, an extremely strong nation, so only four people make it. We have four people in, like, the top 15 or in the top 20 so it's really difficult to make it," the US Open 2017 champion said.
In Miami, Stephens will next play 19th seed Sorana Cirstea from Romania for a place in the third round.