(Watch) Rafael Nadal intensifies training for Paris Olympics 2024

Rafael Nadal has decided to miss Wimbledon to focus on the Paris Olympics.

After failing to progress beyond the first round at the French Open this year, Rafael Nadal is keen to secure a third Olympic gold medal, this time on his favourite clay at Roland-Garros. The 22-time Grand Slam winner is the undisputed “King of Clay,” having won the French Open a record 14 times.

The 38-year-old is improving his physical condition ahead of the Olympic Games. He will compete in both singles and doubles. The 2022 French Open winner is currently training at the Rafa Nadal Academy in his hometown of Manacor.

Also Read: Full list of tennis players who have withdrawn from Paris Olympics 2024

The Spaniard has played just 11 matches in 2024 as he’s had to deal with injuries, most recently a hip that required surgery last year. Rafael Nadal fell at the first hurdle at Roland-Garros against World No. #4 Alexander Zverev. The reigning Olympic champion from Germany won 6-3, 7-6, 6-4.

Nevertheless, Nadal is undoubtedly the best player in the event’s history, registering a 112-4 win-loss record, with only Zverev, Novak Djokovic and Robin Soderling getting the better of him.

In order to focus on the Olympics, Nadal has decided to skip Wimbledon and instead he will play at the Nordea Open in Bastad, Sweden in the weeks before the Games in July. Meanwhile, he will team up with compatriot Carlos Alcaraz, who won the French Open tile earlier this month, at the Games.

Nadal won his first Olympic gold in the men’s singles at Beijing 2008. Eight years later, the Spaniard claimed the men’s doubles gold at Rio. Paris 2024 will be his fourth and final Olympics, having made his Olympic debut 20 years ago in Athens.

Alcaraz, on the other hand, will make his Olympic debut at the venue where he won his most recent Grand Slam title. The World No. 2 is undoubtedly the favourite to lift the top medal in the French capital, having won two of the last four Grand Slams.

The 21-year-old won his first Grand Slam title back in 2022 in the United States and then secured the Wimbledon crown last year, before defeating Zverev in the final in Paris on June 9.

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