Coco Gauff: A shining light of resilience
Just 21 years old, the tennis star is already a role model.
By Shalise Manza Young
There was one gutsy, gorgeous, gracious, bright spot last weekend. Hopefully, you got to see it, a shining light in what was otherwise a dark couple of days.
The joy was provided by Coco Gauff, who won her first French Open on Saturday, beating Aryna Sabalenka. Gauff showed her resilience early, forcing a first set tiebreaker after getting down 4-1; though she ended up losing that set, she used her masterful footwork and defensive prowess to cover every inch of the court and win the second and third sets.
On match point, Gauff watched Sabalenka’s cross-court backhand sail wide and, in one motion, raised her arms as she slid backward onto the ground, stretching her legs out and covering her face with her hands. When she rolled over crying, she put her forehead onto the surface, orange clay sticking to her skin and in her long braids.
Just 21 years old, Gauff now has two Grand Slam championships, tennis’s barometer of greatness. She also beat Sabalenka for the 2023 U.S. Open title, losing the first set before claiming the second and third, just like in Paris last week.
Basketball Hall of Famer Charles Barkley chided us long ago that role models should be found not in athletes but in parents, teachers, or doctors.
But if Coco Gauff isn’t a role model, even at her young age, I’m not sure who is. As she has risen to the top of her sport, from what we see, she is everything I want my daughters to be: grounded, thanks to her parents, grandparents and siblings; working to make the most of her talents; willing to show vulnerability; uplifting others; exceedingly kind; and unafraid to speak up about civil and human rights issues.
After her win, photos and videos were posted by Gauff herself, the Open, and media outlets of her celebration, a huge smile ever present. In the moments after the win, she embraced legendary film director Spike Lee, who was sitting courtside (she said she hoped her championship made up for his beloved New York Knicks losing in the NBA playoffs), then ran up the stadium steps to her parents and support team. She gave high-fives and posed for photos with the ball kids, letting them hold her gleaming silver winner’s trophy. She was kinder than she could have been in her post-match press conference after being told of Sabalenka’s comment that it wasn’t so much that Gauff had played well as Sabalenka played poorly.
And that was just on Saturday.
It’s to be expected that anyone would be so happy after a big win, but Gauff’s personality is why she’s become beloved since first garnering wider attention at Wimbledon in 2019 at only 15. She beat one of her idols, Venus Williams, in the opening round and then notched two other victories against far more experienced players before losing in the Round of 16.
Gauff has been open about how she’s fought self-doubt and a sort of imposter syndrome over the years despite her ascent. She really blossomed in 2023 – a first-round loss at Wimbledon threw her mentally, but she rebounded in spectacular fashion, winning 18 of 19 matches that included two tournament titles and culminated in that U.S. Open crown.
She might have gone into Saturday’s championship as the No. 2-ranked player in the world, but her 2022 championship loss in Paris weighed heavily on her mind. So she borrowed a tactic American sprinting star Gabby Thomas used at the 2024 Olympics, writing “I will win French Open 2025” over and over on a piece of paper and tucked it in her bag. She repeated it to herself during the rest period between the first and second sets.
She was name-dropped by rapper Tyler the Creator (in “Thought I was dead”) and repaid the favor by quoting his lyrics in her acceptance speech on Saturday. Her Halloween costumes are epic (last year, she was Deadpool). Her TikTok page is a mixture of lip syncing to songs, raising trophies, and content for her many sponsors. In the hottest battle of 2024, Drake vs. Kendrick Lamar, she was Team Kendrick (Drake has dissed Serena Williams in multiple songs).
And there’s her advocacy. She is heavily influenced by her maternal grandmother, Yvonne Lee Odom, the first Black student to integrate what was then called Seacrest High School in Delray Beach, Fla., in 1961. She believes that speeches and posts in support of Black rights or the LGBTQ community are easy compared with what her grandmother endured.
Last year, when the Women’s Tennis Association announced it would be holding its season-ending tournament in Saudi Arabia, Gauff did not hesitate to say that she was not comfortable with the decision, noting the country’s harmful laws on women and LGBTQ people. She pushed the WTA to create a plan or program for a more inclusive tennis option there, and not just be in Saudi Arabia for a couple of days and then leave without trying to do something to help change.
As Beyonce might say, Coco, you’re one of one, you’re number one, you’re the only one. Thanks for giving us a little joy.
Shalise Manza Young was most recently a columnist at Yahoo Sports, focusing on the intersection of race, gender and culture in sports. The Associated Press Sports Editors named her one of the 10 best columnists in the country in 2020. She has also written for the Boston Globe and Providence Journal. Find her on Bluesky @shalisemyoung.
Thank you for such an upbeat positive report of a woman who has conquered herself.
Go Coco!
It's a remarkable accomplishment to enter into the highly visible, pressure-packed environment of professional tennis and to navigate it as skilfully, as openly, and as professionally as Coco Gauff has done since she was a young teenager. As fans of the sport, most of us hope not only for a complete effort during the matches, but for the competitors to conduct their affairs afterwards with maturity, compassion, and intelligence. Coco, you do that and more. Thank you so much.