This Was Not  Coco Gauff’s First French Open Final

The first time Coco Gauff was in the French Open finals was in 2022. She was just 18 at the time and playing against the number one seed, Iga Swiatek from Poland, who easily beat Gauff in straight sets.

According to Talksport, during the awards, Gauff said, “This is the first time for me, so let’s try to get through this.”

Through a steady stream of tears, she also paid tribute to her opponent and her team.   But her thank you to the crowd, who kept cheering for her, is what everyone remembers.

“Thank you guys for always supporting me,” the American said. “Hopefully, this is the first final of many. I really appreciate you guys a lot. You guys helped me so much throughout this year.”

How Her First French Open Final Made Coco Gauff Doubt Herself

Gauff talks openly about that first experience because it left an indelible mark. After winning on Saturday, she reflected on how much that first loss at the French Open devastated her.

“I had dark thoughts because this was a tournament I really wanted to win. I paid attention to every detail. When the Polish anthem played, I vividly remember thinking, ‘this is such a cool moment.’

It was a tough time. I was doubting myself, wondering if I would ever succumb to it, especially my mentality going into the match.

I was crying going into the match. I couldn’t breathe, and if I couldn’t handle this, how could I handle anything else? How am I going to handle this again?

Obviously, the US Open happened. Now I really felt ready today, regardless of what happened. I can leave it all out there and leave here proud.”

How Coco Gauff Rises Above the Drama

Coco Gauff may have studied at the Audra McDonald school of grace because they are both unbothered by controversy. They focus on their talent and don’t get distracted in the muck and mire.

If you are unclear about what I am referencing, according to SI.com, when Aryna Sabalenka, the world’s top-ranked tennis player, spoke to reporters after their French Open Finals match, she was far from gracious. She didn’t think Gauff won because she was particularly good. It was because Sabalenka thought she had an off day.

“I think it was more windy. Also, I think I was over emotional,” Sabalenka said. “Today, I didn’t handle myself quite well mentally. Basically, that’s it. I was just making unforced errors. I don’t know. I have to check the statistics. I think she won the match not because she played incredibly. Just because I made all of those mistakes, if you look from the outside, from kind of easy balls.”

Only after being called out for her rude remarks, Sabalenka acknowledged that Gauff had earned the prize (which, of course, we already knew).

“Yesterday was a tough one. Coco handled the conditions much better than I did and fully deserved the win,” Sabalenka wrote. “She was the better player yesterday, and I want to give her the credit she earned…..I didn’t play my best, and Coco stepped up and played with poise and purpose.”

When Gauff appeared on GMA Monday, June 9, 2025, Robin Roberts asked her about Sabalenka’s comments. Gauff admitted that the wind had been a factor throughout the tournament. Some of her matches had been played with the roof open, others with it closed.

“Honestly, when I stepped on the court, I was aware of the wind. We both practiced with the roof closed,” she said. “I honestly wanted the roof to be closed before the match because in my quarter-final and semi it was closed and I was playing good tennis.

But I found it was open, I saw how windy it was on the court, and I knew it was going to be an ugly wind, she continued. “If you play in windy conditions, if you play tennis, you know it is not going to be a perfect day on a windy court. I knew that going in.

After that, she continued, I was a little surprised about the comments. But I am going to give her the benefit of the doubt. I am sure it was an emotional day, an emotional match.

Every time I play Aryna, she is a tough opponent. She is a fighter. We are 6-5 in head-to-head, so it’s very close. I had to force her to play that way.”

In an interview with another outlet, she put it more succinctly. “When the wind is blowing, you’re not going to win by playing pretty tennis.”

 

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Coco Gauff Leans on Positivity and Belief

When Gauff stopped at CBS Mornings, Nate Burleson asked the young champion if she ever had any self-doubt. She said yes.

“I have a lot of self-doubt. I talk openly about it because a lot of people deal with that in their everyday lives,” she said. “I try to redirect them into positive thoughts.

Even if you don’t truly believe them. Eventually, when those moments are tough and your back is against the wall, and you don’t know where to lean. Try leaning on positivity and belief.

That’s what carried me through that match and throughout the whole tournament.”

But even when she is winning, she remembers who she is.

According to ESPN.com, she said this in one of her post-win interviews. “There’s a lot going on in our country right now with things,” she said.

“But just to be able to be a representation of that and a representation of, I guess, people that look like me in America who maybe don’t feel as supported during this time period, and so just being that reflection of hope and light for those people.”

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Fred Newhouse’s Road to the Olympics

In 1976, while working at Exxon and simultaneously competing in track and field, Fred won Olympic Gold and Silver Medals at the Montreal Olympic Games. He has been involved in track and field in some capacity for his entire life and currently serves on the Meet Management Teams for national and international competitions.

Newhouse has earned a lot of success in the sport, but it was not easy by any means. Even just making it to the Olympics was a process. He tried out for three Olympic teams in 1960, 1968, and 1972 before he was ultimately selected in 1976. Newhouse says that going through the adversity of making it to the Olympics is all part of the process. But it was his drive that helped him persevere.

The Olympic Preparation Process

“Unfortunately, like in any other sport, some days are better than others. And our system is designed around one day for track and field for each event,” he said. “And you know well in advance what that day will be, and you prepare. So it doesn’t matter what you do all the other days. What you do on the day of the Olympic trials matters. So it’s all about you.”

The Olympics’ preparation process differs from that of other sporting events. Most sports operate seasonally, with a scheduled offseason for the athletes to recoup. But the training for the Olympics is nonstop. Newhouse says that for him and many other Olympic athletes, the preparation for the event begins as early as high school.

“Preparation takes years and years and years for most athletes. And it starts, for most, me included, in high school, if not before. That’s when they first realize that they have the potential to be an Olympic athlete. And that is where it begins—and it’s every day for years,” Newhouse said.

“After that, a competition is staged where the 16 best runners in the country are invited to try out for the Olympic team. Of those, 16 will make it to the finals. There are three rounds of competition: prelims, quarterfinals, the semifinals, and the finals. And then the top three are who go on to represent the country at the Olympic Games.”

Putting His Olympic Experience to Use

Fred could have taken his experience as an Olympic gold medalist, rode off into the sunset, and retired. However, he knew he had so much knowledge to offer in the sport and wanted to share that with other athletes.

He used that experience to found the Northwest Flyers Youth Track Club in Houston, where he coached until 1996.

Fred already had previous experience as a track coach. While earning his MBA at the University of Washington, he was the track team’s graduate assistant and coached sprinters, jumpers, and quarter-milers.

However, the catalyst for his founding the Northwest Flyers was when his daughters noted unfair treatment at the initial club they joined. Then, Newhouse and his wife decided to bet on themselves.

“My daughter says, ‘We don’t like this coach because he doesn’t even put the best girls on the relay team in the track club,” Newhouse said. “And my wife looked at me and said, ‘Why don’t we have a track club?’ ‘So we know there’s no bias in the process.”

Newhouse’s club has employed as many as 100 athletes simultaneously. Simply put, the Flyers gave him purpose.

“It was just the joy of my life. To provide an atmosphere where these kids could grow and enjoy each other. We tried to, again, continue to expose them to different things,” he said. “And we always did. And that gave them exposure to other parts of the country. We traveled to a lot of different universities. They got to see things that they only saw on television. And we figured out a way to do it.”

The Life Lessons He Wants Them to Remember

As a former Olympian, Newhouse possesses a rare knowledge of what it takes to be successful in track and field competition. He instilled some of those same principles into his Northwest Flyers athletes.

“We “encourage our athletes to recognize their assets and liabilities and manage them all appropriately. And you know them when you see them and know what to do. Do them humbly, with courtesy and respect for others, because you have to do them,” he said. “The sooner you start learning how to manage them, the better. Because later in life, when it takes a much larger effort, you’ll do better at it.”

Newhouse’s coaching goes beyond just telling athletes what to do. It is also about teaching them what not to do. He wanted to prepare athletes in his club to avoid making the same mistakes he did on his come-up, mainly how to avoid distractions.

“The main problem I see as an athlete’s biggest battle is all the distractions vying for their attention during that process. They have to be ready to manage additional things on top of their competition,” he” said. “The most difficult part is staying focused on the why. Why are you doing this? Because you’ve got so many distracting things around you.”

Measuring His Successes

Not every athlete will make it to the Olympic Trials. However, Newhouse says that even the athletes from his club who don’t have Olympic careers are successful in other areas of life, such as graduating from college or starting a business. That was his vision when he started the club, which remains a success today.

“We’ve got something extraordinary going on, and we’re going to continue because we know we’re making a difference in people’s lives. We know we are,” he added.

“We’re not bragging about it. We’re happily doing it. Right. And while it started as a selfish thing with our children, it also made a difference in their lives. Because they developed friendships, relationships that have lasted for 40 years.”

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