Doubles World No.3 Gabriela Dabrowski has stunned the tennis world with a shocking revelation. The US Open champion and Canadian star recently shared horrific details on social media about her fight with a fatal health disease in the 2024 season while also being active on the court and winning titles.
The 32-year-old revealed that she was diagnosed with breast cancer in April 2024. After two surgeries and a three-month break from the WTA circuit, she returned to the court at the Nottingham Open. Alongside her partner New Zealand’s Erin Routliffe, they emerged victorious at her first tournament back to the court.
A few weeks later, the pair reached the Wimbledon Championship doubles but lost the title to Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend. After that, Dabrowski further delayed her treatment as she flew to Paris to represent Canada at the Olympics. There, she claimed a bronze medal with Felix Auger-Aliassime in the mixed doubles.
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Before the US Open, she underwent radiation therapy, which led to her exiting the Grand Slam event due to fatigue as a result of the treatment. She also explained that she started hormone therapy after the competition.
It all seems surreal. If you saw me smiling more on court in the past six months, it was genuine. My cancer diagnosis was the catalyst for more sustained change. When the threat of losing everything I’d worked for my entire life became a real possibility, only then did I begin to authentically appreciate what I had.
Dabrowski also added that her health challenge has not made her stop playing on the court. And the people around her, both her team and family, have helped her to keep going on the court despite the obstacles last season.
Gabriela Dabrowski reveals reasons behind sharing her fight with cancer
Gabriela Dabrowski ended the year at the Billie Jean King Cup Finals in Malaga. The Wimbledon finalist aimed to help her country regain the title but that didn’t materialize. However, she ended the year on a good note by winning the WTA Finals doubles alongside her friend Erin Routliffe.
Gabriela Dabrowski (via New York Times)
While sharing the horrific details about her struggles with cancer, Dabrowski said that she is making her story public because she wants to help other women facing similar treatment.
Why am I sharing my story now? For a long time I wasn’t ready to expose myself to the possible attention and questions I’d have gotten before. I wanted to figure everything out and handle things privately with only those closest to me in the loop. There were so many unknowns and so much learning and research to be done. Currently I’m in a place where I have a better grasp of my treatment, side effects and how to manage them.
Dabrowski is a three-time Grand Slam champion. The 32-year-old first won the 2017 mixed doubles French Open alongside India’s Rohan Bopanna, then the 2018 Australian Open with Croatia’s Mate Pavic. She then won the 2023 US Open women’s doubles with Routliffe.
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Victor Okechukwu is a Tennis Writer at Firstsportz. With over a year of experience, he is aiming to understand how tennis tournaments connect with fans' lives. Also, he is a short story writer, good at weaving metaphorical phrases to reveal his characters, and also has more than two dozen publications to boast for it.
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Victor Okechukwu
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