“With women it becomes a bigger issue,” Danielle Collins opens up about heated encounter with Iga Swiatek at Paris Olympics
After retiring from her quarterfinal match at the Paris Olympics, Danielle Collins had a heated altercation with Iga Swiatek.
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Iga Swiatek, Danielle Collins (Images via X)
Danielle Collins was involved in a heated encounter with Iga Swiatek when they met in the quarterfinals of the Paris Olympics. She opened up about that incident in a recent interview.
During that match at Roland Garros, one of Collins’ shots hit Swiatek’s chest. Collins later retired from the match due to an injured stomach muscle. When they shook hands, they exchanged some words and later in the press conference, Collins accused Swiatek of being ‘fake’.
Collins had told Swiatek during the handshake that the Pole “didn’t have to be insincere about” Collins’ injury. Swiatek, however, said in the press conference she had no idea what Collins meant, choosing not to argue.
The American, who hasn’t spoken with Swiatek since then, has now recalled that incident and admitted that she wanted to take a different approach. Collins also felt altercations between male players don’t garner much attention.
She’s not someone that I really get to see a lot at the tennis and she’s very guarded with her group. We all make mistakes and fall short. And I’m just trying to put that behind me. I think when guys kind of get into a little tiff or a little bit of friction, I think that it’s kind of expected. With women, it becomes this way bigger issue than it really needs to be.
Danielle Collins told The Athletic
Danielle Collins had some words after the match: “Your behaviour is terrible, next time I hit the ball I’ll aim for your face, b*tch” said the American to her opponent Swiatek pic.twitter.com/X3AQED1jtr
— carlos (@tsitsichard) July 31, 2024
Danielle Collins wants to be an inspiration for girls dealing with endometriosis problems
Had Danielle Collins never reversed her retirement decision, the Billie Jean King Cup would have been the final tournament of her career. But Collins has announced that her struggle with endometriosis has forced her to prolong her career.
Collins wanted to start a family and chose to hang up her racket. But one of the reasons behind taking the U-turn is that now she aims to be an inspiration for women struggling with endometriosis.
I think as you get older, you play things that are bigger than the sport. I know that I’ve been able to have a positive impact on a lot of people’s lives by sharing my story and being able to offer some inspiration at some level for women and young girls that are watching.
Danielle Collins told The Athletic
Collins last participated at the Guadalajara Open in September. She got knocked out of the event after a straight-set defeat to Olivia Gadecki in her opening round. This year has so far been the best in her career, as she won two titles, including her first WTA 1000 trophy at the Miami Open.
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