Coco Gauff Fights Back Tears During Olympics Loss

Donna Vekić defeated Coco Gauff in the third round of the Olympics.

Coco Gauff lost in the third round of the Olympics. / Amber Searls-USA TODAY Sports

It could be argued that no athlete representing Team USA in the 2024 Summer Olympics had received more publicity than Coco Gauff. The 20-year-old tennis phenom even shared the role of flag-bearer during the Opening Ceremony with LeBron James.

Unfortunately for fans, Gauff's quest for a gold medal came to an abrupt end on Tuesday. Donna Vekić defeated Coco Gauff in the third round of the women's singles tournament. Vekić pulled off the upset in straight sets: 7-6(7), 6-2.

Vekić was down 2-5 in the first set and battled back. However, it was a battle between Gauff and the umpire that disrupted her opponents game plan.

Coco Gauff talking through tears as she's not happy with the umpire in her match at Olympics

Vekic’s ball was called out, but it was in, so the line judge corrected it.

Coco hit that ball into the net.

The umpire says it’s Donna’s point. He believes the 'out' call didn't… pic.twitter.com/VKoCV79bOT

— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) July 30, 2024

During one rally, Vekić's ball was incorrectly called out, and the judge corrected it. Gauff hit that ball into the net. The umpire said it was Vekić's point. Gauff immediately became flustered, saying, "He called it out before I hit the ball."

From there, it got even uglier. Fighting back tears, Gauff argued, "This is not fair. You guys are not fair to me. I hope that one day the game becomes fair, but it's not."

And just like that, Guaff's run in the Olympics is over. She already made history by becoming the youngest player to win a match in the Summer Games, but her hopes were much higher than that.

WOW.

Donna Vekic plays a FANTASTIC match to beat the world #2 Coco 7-6(7), 6-2 and reach the QFs at the #Olympics!

One of the best wins of her career, coming right after the heartbreaking loss at the Wimbledon semifinals. Incredible run for her in #Paris2024. pic.twitter.com/aIZ2x4LhHd

— José Morgado (@josemorgado) July 30, 2024

Even worse, this is the latest episode of Gauff letting emotions take over on the court. During her Wimbledon loss to Emma Navarro, Gauff yelled at her coach for more instructions in the middle of the match.

Gauff still gets to play doubles and mixed doubles, but today was a major disappointment for many fans. Tennis fans can follow Sports Illustrated's Serve on SI for all the most important news from the sport and beyond.

Further Reading: Rafael Nadal expressed his frustration with the speculation about his retirement.