Golden Slam: Novak Djokovic Achieves Tennis Milestone After Winning Gold At Olympics

Only an elite group of tennis players have secured this massive feat.

At Novak Djokovic’s fifth try at the Olympic Games, he finally achieved what every tennis player dreams of: a Golden Slam.

In his final match against Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz, Djokovic won in straight sets 7-6 (3), 7-6 (2). This win got him his second Olympic medal and his first gold.

READ ALSO: Collecting Gold: Carlos Yulo Bags Another Olympic Medal For The Philippines

A tennis player earns a Golden Slam once they’ve won all four Grand Slams (Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, US Open) and an Olympic gold medal in singles.

Now including Djokovic, only five people have ever achieved this feat. The elite group of tennis players includes Steffi Graf, Andre Agassi, Rafael Nadal, and Serena Williams.

With this feat, the Serbian tennis player is now also the oldest man to win an Olympics singles gold medal.

“I put my heart, my soul, my body, my family—my everything—on the line to win Olympic gold,” Djokovic said. “Incredible battle. Incredible fight.”

Nadal, Djokovic’s longtime rival, mentioned him in his Instagram story, writing “Congrats Novak on completing the Golden Slam and being able to achieve what you wanted. Well done.” Djokovic was also able to win against him earlier in the tournament.

Also on Instagram, Djokovic commended his Olympic final opponent, saying “A quick shoutout to @carlitosalcarazz. Another epic final, my friend. El clasico. Congratulations to you and your team for an excellent Olympics.”

Career Highlights

Djokovic already has a record of 24 Grand Slam singles trophies under his belt. He has also ranked No. 1 in the world for a total of 428 weeks.

By 2018, Djokovic had already won ATP Masters titles across all nine tournaments in the series. He currently has a record total of 40 Masters titles. Through this feat, he is the first and only player to achieve the Career Golden Masters.

He won his first Olympic medal in 2008 at only 21 years old. But Djokovic did not rest until he finally claimed the elusive gold medal, competing in five Olympic Games throughout his career.

“I was so blessed to win everything pretty much there is to win in my sport, but this is something different,” said Djokovic about his latest achievement. “This supersedes everything that I’ve ever felt on the tennis court after winning big trophies. It’s just incredible joy.”

Banner image via Wikimedia Commons.