"Pushed my body to the absolute limit and it was more than worth it" - Monica Puig runs her first marathon
Former tennis professional Monica Puig shone in a different role as she managed to finish her maiden marathon at the NYC Marathon this year.
The Puerto Rican won the gold medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics. Puig retired from the sport in 2022 due to successive injuries.
The former tennis professional debuted as a runner in this year’s New York City Marathon. Puig shared the news on her social media platform and through her Instagram stories, she kept on updating her followers about the race.
She eventually posted a picture of herself as she managed to finish her debut run in a marathon.
“ Completely overwhelmed with emotion over this! Pushed my body to the absolute limit and it was MORE than worth it! First marathon in the books and already looking forward to the next!,” Monica Puig captioned her post.
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Completely overwhelmed with emotion over this! Pushed my body to the absolute limit and it was MORE than worth it! First marathon in the books and already looking forward to the next! 🥇🗽🏃🏼♀️ https://t.co/Z3aN6sQzwj
Although Puig's time was a bit longer, she achieved her goal of reaching the finish line.
"I have nothing against Novak Djokovic, I just didn't understand the ATP and WTA rules" - Monica Puig on questioning Serbian's ATP Finals qualification
Last week, Monica Puig clarified her questioning of Novak Djokovic's ATP Finals qualification.
Puig had earlier stated that she was confused regarding the ATP and WTA rules as Djokovic earned a spot in the year-end Finals, while Elena Rybakina, the Wimbledon women’s singles winner did not qualify for the Finals.
Total confusion 🤔 https://t.co/shxF1IOvT4
"I'm a bit confused as to tennis news | read today. So Djokovic qualified for the ATP Finals in Turin because he won Wimbledon (even though no ranking points were awarded) but, Rybakina couldn't qualify for the WTA Finals also being a Wimbledon champion this year because no points were awarded," Puig said.
Former World No. 1 Djokovic’s ATP qualification has been under a lot of speculation over the past few days. The Serb earned his qualification based on the provision, which allows a player who has won a Grand Slam in the current year and finishes between eighth and 20th in the ATP Live Race to Turin.
The 21-time Grand Slam champion, who is currently ranked at No. 7 won Wimbledon this year and easily qualified for the Finals despite Wimbledon not rewarding any ranking points this year. However, Rybakina did not qualify for the Finals as she was ranked No. 21.
After being on the receiving end of a lot of criticism, Monica Puig clarified her statement by saying that she had nothing against Djokovic, she was just confused.
It’s the last I’m going to say on this matter because arguing with you all is exhausting. I have NOTHING against Djokovic. I’ve met him several times and I admire all his achievements. He qualified and that’s great! I just didn’t understand the ATP and WTA rules," Puig wrote.
It’s the last I’m going to say on this matter because arguing with you all is exhausting. I have NOTHING against Djokovic. I’ve met him several times and I admire all his achievements. He qualified and that’s great! I just didn’t understand the ATP and WTA rules.