Jiri Lehecka to miss Paris Olympics due to back injury

The 22-year-old from Czechia defeated Rafael Nadal at the Madrid Open in May.

Jiri Lehecka is set to miss the Paris Olympics because of a back injury which has been troubling him for quite some time. The 22-year-old defeated Rafael Nadal in the Round of 16 at the Madrid Open in May. However, his dream run came to an abrupt end in the semi-finals against Felix Auger-Aliassime, retiring when the score was locked at 3-3.

“I would have never imagined that I would qualify for the biggest sporting event in the world. It has always been a dream for me to represent my country and it was clearly one of my main goals for this season,” Lehecka wrote on X.

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“I’ve done everything I can to have a chance to play, but my body is still not ready to compete at the highest level. I wish the best of luck to all Czech athletes who will participate and I will cheer for them from home. I’m sure they will make us proud.”

At the Madrid Open, Lehecka was having a tournament to remember, getting the better of Nadal 7-5, 6-4 in the second round. In the third round, he got a walkover against Daniil Medvedev. However, the 22-year-old was forced to retire-hurt against Canada’s Auger-Aliassime with the same back injury.

Lehecka’s maiden ATP title

The Czech’s lone ATP title triumph came at the Adelaide Open back in January this year courtesy of defeating Jack Draper in the final. The victory helped the 22-year-old to climb to 25th spot in the rankings. He then reached the second round at the 2024 Australian Open.

Lehecka’s best run at a Grand Slam came at the 2023 Australia Open, where he progressed to the quarter-finals, where he lost to Stefanos Tsitsipas, who finished as the runner-up in Melbourne.

The tennis event at the Paris 2024 Olympics will see most of the top stars from the ATP and WTP tours competing for five gold medals up for grabs. Italy’s Janik Sinner and Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz, who have won the first two Grand Slam’s of the year respectively are the top men’s singles players to keep an eye on.

In the women’s section, Iga Swiatek, who recently conquered her third straight Roland-Garros crown will be hoping to secure a gold medal for Poland. Meanwhile, 14-time French Open winner Rafael Nadal, at 38, looks set to play his final Olympic Games.

The tennis event at Paris Olympcs starts on July 27 and finishes on August 4. It will be played on clay at Roland Garros, the home of French Open.