Rafael Nadal has admitted, during the tribute organised by the Spanish Olympic Committee (COE), that since he retired he has not played tennis again. “I haven’t picked up a racket again,” he confessed to a packed Goyeneche auditorium while sharing the stage with Alejandro Blanco, president of the COE, and journalist Juanma Castano, who acted as master of ceremonies.
“I have done less sport than I would like but I have played football again. What I haven’t done is pick up a racket again,” said the 22-time Grand Slam winner and Roland Garros clay-court king with 14 titles.Nadal said goodbye to tennis on November 20, 2024 after Spain lost 2-1 in the quarter-final match of the Davis Cup Finals in Malaga against the Netherlands. In October he had already warned that this competition would be the last of his career.
A new stage in life
In this new stage of his life, Nadal has acknowledged that he is now in a period of “finding personal motivations. There are many things that come naturally to me and I will have to keep doing, but I have to discover what really motivates me. I’m in the process of discovering it.”
I’m in the process of discovering what really motivates me
“I am very grateful to everyone. I was very happy to be with you this morning. Sincerely, I have felt the love of the people during these years. The gratitude is infinite,” added the two-time Olympic champion in singles at Beijing 2008 and in doubles in Rio de Janeiro 2016.
You’re just an ordinary person who plays tennis very well and people lose that perspective
Nadal, who was Olympic flag bearer at the Rio Games and has four Olympic appearances to his name, also recalled the experience of sharing the Village with other athletes. “Being in an Olympic village is a unique experience because you realise what the true values of sport are.”
Rafa is usually one of the most in-demand sportsmen to be photographed with or to sign autographs. He has admitted that he has also done so with other stars. “Phelps, LeBron… And many more, really. You’re really just an ordinary person who plays football or tennis very well and some people lose that perspective,” he said humbly.
At the end of the event, the Mallorcan received a gift from Alejandro Blanco, the heart of Spain. “We have to thank Rafa. You have been the heart of Spain in sport and in our country. You have given us a lot and taught us a lot,” said Blanco.
You have been the heart of Spanish sport and of our country
“There has never been so much media presence in this house,” said the COE president in view of the expectation created to honor Nadal in a ceremony in which, among other athletes, Olympic medalists such as David Cal, Isabel Fernandez, Jennifer Pareja, Marcus Cooper, Alberto Gines and Adriana Cerezo were present
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