ANALYSIS: Memorable moments from WTA Paris Olympic Games: winners, upsets, and surprises

After the Paris Olympics concluded on Sunday, August 4th, we now have a chance to look back and see how some of the players did. Some did really well, while others kind of flopped, but don't worry—we'll get to all of that below.

Before we delve into that, though, we have to note that the outcome of these Olympics has been quite surprising. Surprises in women's tennis aren't that uncommon, but these Olympics were shaping up to be rather stereotypical with a couple of big favourites who ever expected to win the medals.

Funnily enough, that didn't happen, but as always, we're going to start with the winners because the winners write history, so let's take a look at who some of the winners from this year's events are.

Winners

Qinwen Zheng

We have to start with the player who won the gold medal, and it's Qinwen Zheng. The Chinese player who bested everyone en route to the medal comfortably to win the golden one. To illustrate just how well she played, she basically did what Iga Swiatek was expected to do, and that's to win the gold medal in style. The Chinese player wasn't really challenged once we got to the medal rounds.

Qinwen Zheng Olympic Games 2024

Even the matchup against Iga Swiatek wasn't that complicated for her because she easily outplayed her to win in two sets. The final against Donna Vekic was also relatively comfortable, and it was just the crowning moment for the Chinese player who has been in the Top 10 for a while. This run is the signature run she's needed to be formally acknowledged as a top player, and that's why she's the biggest winner.

Donna Vekic

There is no way we can talk about the Olympic winners without mentioning Donna Vekic, who finished runner up. In a vacuum, this placing might be the most notable achievement of her career because it certainly came out of nowhere. Yes, she was in the Wimbledon semi-final, but to have such a run on clay, which hasn't been the best surface for her historically, is certainly impressive.

What's even more impressive is that Vekic bested second-favourite Coco Gauff en route to the final, which is also an incredible achievement. It seems like things are finally clicking for the Croatian, who has now had two really strong outings in the two last events she's played. That certainly bodes well for her future, and the confidence she must have after these results will carry her forward.

Jasmine Paolini

One player who has been doing some amazing stuff recently has been Jasmine Paolini. The Italian solidified herself as a Top 10 player by making back-to-back finals at Roland Garros and Wimbledon. As incredible as that achievement has been, the Paris Olympics will be the event she will remember because she's going to go home with a medal.

Jasmine Paolini Australian Open 2024

After missing out on winning the doubles trophy at Roland Garros, Paolini returned with a lot of motivation to Paris, and she was able to get it done this time around. Pairing with Sara Errani, the Italian was able to go all the way to the doubles final and play a really solid match to win the gold medal, which is the crowning moment of her career.

She's done a lot of great things this year, but she was lacking that signature run paired with a trophy of some sort to show off. The gold medal at the Olympics is certainly that shiny thing that she can present and cherish for the rest of her life. It's also proof that her run this year isn't a fluke. It's real, folks.

Mirra Andreeva

Another winner at this year's Paris Olympics has to be Mirra Andreeva, even though her singles campaign didn't go that well. The Russian was busy playing in Iasi the week before the Olympics, and it probably hurt her at the Olympics.

She arrived very late in Paris, with little time to prepare for her singles match, and it went pretty poorly.It was a devastating loss for Andreeva, but not all was lost for the Russisian because she won her maiden trophy in Iasi, a solid consolation prize.

Another great consolation prize is the Olympid Medal, which she won in the doubles together with Diana Shnaider, as they just narrowly missed out on the gold medal. Even though she won the silver medal, it's still a medal, and she's still a teenager who did an amazing thing at her maiden Olympics. There will be more chances to win medals in the future, but for now, she's certainly a winner.

Anna-Karolina Schmiedlova

The fairytale run of this year's Olympics belongs to Anna-Karolina Shcmiedlova, who was once a talented player with a lot of promise. She had a quick start to her career with some amazing early results, but since then, the Slovakian has faltered quite a bit to become an average player without too many successes.

She arrived in Paris with fairly average results, hoping to just play one solid match before she bows out of the competition. What ended up happening was totally different as the Slovakian found her best tennis in years to win multiple matches en route ot the semi-final.

She beat several notable players, such as Beatriz Haddad Maia, Katie Boulter, Jasmine Paolini, and Barbora Krejcikova, to get herself to the medal round. The fairytale wouldn't end up being a proper one, as Donna Vekic beat her in the semi-final and then Iga Swiatek in the Bronze Medal match, but she's going to leave Paris with a newfound confidence that she can still do something in tennis. That's extremely valuable.

Losers

Iga Swiatek

We have to start with Iga Swiatek, who is undoubtedly one of the biggest losers of this year's Olympics. A player who has lifted four Roland Garros trophies so far in her career, she was by far the biggest favourite to win the gold medal, but she failed in the most important match of her career. Swiatek generally didn't look as impressive, which likely indicated some nerves.

After her loss to Qinwen Zheng, she admitted that pressure got to her and caused her to play some really lacklustre tennis, which proved not good enough against Zheng. She would salvage some prestige by winning the Bronze Medal, but if you're a player who won 31 of the last 32 matches played on these courts before the event's start, failing to win the gold medal is a massive failure.

Iga Swiatek and Coco Gauff Roland Garros 2024

Coco Gauff

Similarly to Iga Swiatek, Coco Gauff is yet another player who failed spectacularly in Paris. Arriving as a 2nd favourite behind the Polish player, Gauff failed to even make the medal round, getting beaten by Donna Vekic. With all due respect to Vekic, who won Silver, the American played a dreadful match against the Croatian, and it's a proper stain on her career.

It's a loss she'll need a while to get over it because she was hugely favoured. She's not getting a medal after admitting that she's eyeing gold and that's a bad look. She competed in doubles and mixed doubles as well but again failed, so overall, it was a rather poor showing for her in Paris.

Jessica Pegula

Another dark horse candidate who could have snuck into medal contention is Jessica Pegula. With the absence of Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina, Pegula was a name that could have done some damage had she played as well as she can. Unfortunately, the American failed to play on a high level, and she certainly didn't do that in the doubles either, going empty-handed again at the Games. We'll see whether she'll get a chance to compete in Los Angeles in four years because the competition will be fierce.

Barbora Krejcikova

Another player who could have done some real damage here is former Roland Garros champion Krejcikova, who, as we noted, has won here before. She arrived full of confidence after winning Wimbledon, and many expected that in the depleted draw, the Czech player could do something, but a loss to Schmiedlova ended those dreams. As you might imagine, she was a huge favourite in that one.

She also failed to do much in the doubles with Katernia Siniakova even though they were highly seeded and expected to win a medal. This was not a great tournament for the Czech player.

Elena Rybakina

Finally, we have to mention Elena Rybakina, who had high hopes of playing in Paris. Unfortunately, physical problems that had persisted with her over the years once again struck at the worst possible time, and she was forced to abandon her plans.

It's a shame because she would have likely advanced to the medal rounds and possibly won a medal after narrowly missing out on one at the last Olympics when she placed fourth overall.

Elena Rybakina Roland Garros 2024