Tennis at the Olympics was introduced in the inaugural edition in 1896 and was restricted to male athletes, but it was discontinued after 1924. That led to the amateur era, included only as a demonstration sport at the Games in 1968 and 1984 with an age limit of under-21.
Finally, it was reinstated as a full sport from the 1988 edition onward, played on outdoor hardcourts and marking the beginning of the open era. Since then, we have veritably come a long way as the 2024 Paris Olympics will host an equal number of male and female sportspersons.
The Olympic Games is the pinnacle of global sporting excellence and winning the gold medal is the most cherished dream of every player. Here, we look at the list of gold medalists in the women’s singles event, in which a different player has tasted victory in each edition.
1 Steffi Graf
22-time Grand Slam champion Steffi Grafwon the inaugural gold for the sport at Seoul 1988, triumphing over Gabriela Sabatini of Argentina. The two had earlier teamed up to claim the Wimbledon doubles crown.
Such was the dominance of Graf that she was the only player to complete the calendar year Golden Slam (winning the Olympics and all four Grand Slams – the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and US Open – in the same year).
She also paired with Claudia Kohde-Kilsch to secure the bronze in the women’s doubles. Graf and her husband, Andre Agassi remain the only tennis couple to have won the Olympic gold, Agassi having won in 1996.
