Hommam Al Nassim 
Tunisian tennis star Ons Jabeur announced her official absence from the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, scheduled to be held between July 26 and August 10, which sparked a lot of controversy among followers of yellow ball sports.
The Arab icon, ranked tenth in the world, surprised all her followers when she confirmed through her official account on the “Instagram” platform her decision not to participate after consulting with the medical team, as she stated that the rapid change of terrain could expose her knee to the risk of injury and threaten the rest of her sports season.
Jaber, 29 years old, explained that she has always loved representing her country in all competitions, but she must maintain her body and listen to the advice of her medical team.
She expressed her wishes for Tunisian athletes to participate successfully in the Games, stressing that she will be their greatest supporter.
Jabeur’s participation in the Berlin Women’s 500 Championship on Tuesday evening against Chinese Wang Chen increased the controversy, as many considered that the differences between her and the Tunisian Olympic Committee over the past two years had played a major role in her decision not to be part of the Tunisian delegation in Paris, after… She was present at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
Many experts suggested that her expected participation in the Wimbledon Championship, the third Grand Slam tournament in July, prompted her, in one way or another, to withdraw from the Olympic competitions. Jabeur is expected to compete in this year’s Wimbledon Championship, after reaching the final in the past two years, 2022 and 2023. As the first Arab and African player to achieve this achievement.
This year, Ons Jabeur faced the worst setback in her career in terms of results, as she did not exceed the quarter-final stage in any of the tournaments she participated in during 2024, including her exit from the quarter-finals in the French Open against American Coco Gauff, and her loss in the Birmingham tournament against Czech Karolina Pliskova.
Ons Jabeur is one of the most brilliant Tunisian athletes in recent years, as she has her name engraved in golden letters in major tennis tournaments.
Although she did not win a “Grand Slam’ title, she reached the final on three occasions, making her the only Arab and African to achieve this achievement in the 2022 Wimbledon and US Open tournaments in the same year, before she lost again in the Wimbledon final last year.
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