Andreescu, Fernandez enjoying the journey to be part of Team Canada at Paris 2024
Canada has never won a medal in women’s tennis, and has only ever won one medal – a gold in men’s doubles at Sydney 2000 – but Leylah Annie Fernandez and Bianca Andreescu headline a new generation of Canadian women’s tennis, and look to make history on the clay courts in Paris.
Paris 2024 will be the first appearance at an Olympic Games for Andreescu, who withdrew from the Team Canada squad ahead of Tokyo 2020, and the second Games for Fernandez, who competed at Tokyo 2020, being eliminated in the second round to reigning Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova.
Both players have taken long journeys to get to Paris; Andreescu made her mark in women’s tennis with her 2019 US Open win as she defeated Serena Williams in the final, and reached a career-high WTA ranking of No. 4, but after struggled with injuries to her neck, back, knee and ankle.
Andreescu returned to the WTA Tour after a nine-months hiatus at the 2024 French Open, where she entered using protected ranking, and reached the third round with wins over Sara Sorribes Tormo and 23rd seed Anna Kalinskaya before falling to French Open finalist Jasmine Paolini.
She then finished as the runner-up at the Libema Open in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands, defeating four-time Grand Slam title winner Naomi Osaka of Japan in a quarterfinal to reach her first final on grass in two years, since Bad Homburg in 2022.
The 24-year-old looks to continue her comeback on the tour at the Olympics, making her debut for Team Canada, something that has been a long-time goal for Andreescu, even amongst the chaos of the tennis schedule this year.
“It’s definitely not the easiest schedule, but I mean, in order to play the Olympics, that’s just what it is – I’ve never played the Olympics, so I really wanted to make it a priority,” said Andreescu.
“Even though the hardcourt season is still a huge priority to me, Olympics are Olympics, it’s only once every four years. I really wanted to play it, and I’m super grateful that I’ve been able to qualify, so I’m really looking forward to it.”
While an Olympic medal is the goal for any athlete competing in Paris, for Andreescu the journey means more than the destination, and being able to progress after months off from injury is something she is focused on while representing Team Canada.
“I have spoken to other players, not only from tennis, but different sports, they say there’s no other feeling like competing for your country at the Olympics,” said Andreescu. “I really want to be able to experience that finally.”
In Bad Homburg, just the third tournament of her comeback from a back injury, Andreescu was ousted in the first round by Anna Blinkova, but the Thornhill native looked at the early exit as a positive as her body showed early signs of pain.
“I’m feeling really good after ‘s-Hertogenbosch, I felt my side a little bit and I had to take a few days off, and wasn’t sure if I was going to play but Bad Homburg, it was kind of like a last minute decision, but the time off really, really helped, and I guess what happened in Bad Homburg was like a blessing in disguise,” said Andreescu.
“I had a bit more time to rest and kind of strengthen a little bit, because I’ve been getting really, really low on grass. And that’s kind of been the goal coming into it to really strengthen the groin area and the quad area. I mean, it’s hard to replicate competition and practice or what you do in the gym, though. If I can continue just getting matches and I think I’ll get stronger and stronger.”
Getting the hunger and motivation back into her game is something that Andreescu hopes for as she keeps returning to the court after her injuries, but she knows that being part of Team Canada is something bigger than just herself.
Being able to support her other teammates who will be joining her in Paris – Fernandez, Felix Auger-Aliassime, Milos Raonic and Gaby Dabrowski – is something that is just as special about her Olympic debut.
“We’re gonna have like team dinners, and we’ll be able to hang out a little bit more, since it’s one coach… I think it’ll be fun to just hang out together and motivate each other in that way,” said Andreescu. “Obviously, if I can go support them during some of the matches, and they can do that for me, that’s how we’ll be able to support each other.”
As for Fernandez, who made her Olympic debut at just 18 years old three years ago in Tokyo, her goal is to support her teammates who are competing in their first Games while also absorbing the knowledge from veteran players.
Also at the mercy of a packed calendar for this summer, Fernandez is ready to take in the experience while also playing some of her best tennis in Paris.
“It will be busy, it will be a packed calendar… it’s, it’s part of the job. For me, the Olympics is such a unique tournament, it comes every four years, so it’s a it’s an opportunity for me to to represent my country as an opportunity for me to support the fellow Canadians in their respective sports,” said Fernandez.
“I think it’s just a chance for me to learn… the calendar, it’s been that way for a very long time, and I don’t think it’s going to change. We’re going to be playing more tournaments. So, my parents, my coaches, my support team, we’ve done a good job in preparing me to, to sustain that type of that type of workload. And, you know, so far so good.”
Canada’s highest-ranked women’s singles entry, Fernandez is currently 23rd in the WTA rankings. She has three career singles titles, winning in Hong Kong in 2023, as well as Monterrey in both 2021 and 2022.
She was a finalist in the 2021 US Open, her best Grand Slam result. She reached the singles quarterfinals of the 2022 French Open at Roland-Garros, as well as the Roland-Garros final in women’s doubles in 2023 with American Taylor Townsend.
One of the highlights of her young career was that she the one to clinch Canada’s first-ever title at the Billie Jean King Cup Finals, defeating Italy’s Jasmine Paolini in straight sets. She lifted the cup alongside Marina Stakusic, Rebecca Marino, Genie Bouchard and Dabrowski.
Like Andreescu, Fernandez is taking in all that her journey has to offer as she prepares for her second Olympics at just 21 years old. A podium is the ultimate goal, but continuing to play her best tennis and be her best self is her first priority.
“I’m just kind of learning a lot more about myself, what I can take, what tournaments I can do, how the body is feeling. For me, I’m feeling great and I’m feeling healthy and strong, so we’re going to get as many turning tournaments as we can,” said Fernandez.
“Enjoy the process, enjoy that moment, enjoy the difficulty that will present itself, and enjoy the suffering, so that at the end of the day, I’m just kind of happy doing the sport that I love.”
