By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Wednesday July 31, 2024
Anna Karolina Schmiedlova is making history for herself and her country at the Paris Olympics.
The 29-year-old has taken out both of 2024's Wimbledon finalists on her improbable run to the semifinals, where she has become the first player from Slovakia to reach an Olympic singles semifinal since Miloslav Mecir in 1988.
67th-ranked Schmiedlova is also the first Slovakian woman to reach an Olympic singles semifinal.
She took out fourth-seeded Jasmine Paolini in the round of 16 and backed the win up with a 6-4, 6-2 quarterfinal victory over Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova on Wednesday in Paris. Schmiedlova, who has defeated three seeded players thus far in Paris (also No.14-seeded Beatriz Haddad Maia of Brazil), will face Marta Kostyuk or Donna Vekic in the last four.
Schmiedlova had managed just one Top-10 win in her career prior to these Olympics. She has tripled that number in her last two rounds. All three of her Top-10 wins have come at the Olympics. She is 0-11 against the Top-10 otherwise.
“The best game of my life is [at] the Olympics, for my country and for the people around me. It’s a big deal. It’s amazing for me and it means a lot," said Schmiedlova, according to the ITF.
The former World No. 26 is enjoying the moment and receiving major support from fans and friends back home. “I’ve never had so many messages and so much support. It’s great for me,” she said.