TENNIS: NADAL TO SKIP WIMBLEDON TO PREPARE FOR OLYMPICS

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Rafael Nadal will skip Wimbledon in July to prepare for the Olympic Games in Paris, which will be played on the clay courts at Roland Garros, the Spaniard posted on social media Thursday.

Nadal, a record 14-time winner of the French Open, has been far from his best after returning from injuries, and he exited the tournament at Roland Garros in the first round this year, losing in straight sets to eventual runner-up Alexander Zverev.

The 38-year-old missed almost all of 2023 with a hip problem, and his comeback earlier this year was stalled by a muscle tear before minor injuries affected his preparation for the clay-court major.

“During my post match press conference at Roland Garros I was asked about my summer calendar and since then I have been practicing on clay. It was announced yesterday that I will play at the summer Olympics in Paris, my last Olympics,” Nadal wrote in his post.

“With this goal, we believe that the best for my body is not to change surface and keep playing on clay until then. It’s for this reason that I will miss playing at the championships this year at Wimbledon.

“I am saddened not to be able to live this year the great atmosphere of that amazing event that will always be in my heart, and be with all the British fans that always gave me great support. I will miss you all.”

Nadal, who won an Olympic singles gold medal in 2008 and a doubles gold in 2016, will team up with newly crowned French Open champion Carlos Alcaraz to play in the doubles at the Olympics.

A two-time champion at Wimbledon, Nadal said he would continue his preparations for the Olympics by playing in the ATP 250 clay-court event in Bastad, Sweden, that starts July 15. It will be his first time playing in Bastad in 19 years, when he won the trophy in 2005.

The Paris Olympics run from July 26 through Aug. 11. The tennis competition begins July 27.