Coco Gauff after winning the 2024 China Open. (Coco Gauff | X)
Ahead of the women’s tennis year-end tournament in Saudi Arabia, which has attracted plenty of criticism due to the alleged rights violations in the country, world number 3 Coco Gauff said she held discussions with country’s leaders over the issue.
The American tennis star said her father was ‘concerned’ over her visit to the country and she had ‘reservations’ about participating in the WTA Finals starting Saturday. Gauff said she met with Princess Reema bint Bandar Al Saud, the Saudi Ambassador to the United States, and discussed the treatment of women in the country.
“We spoke with a lot of women here in Saudi. Multiple calls with her, how the best approach would be to enter into this different place that women have never kind of, women from the US, have never kind of been in. I think for me it was important, and it was one of the questions I brought up because about LGBTQ issues, women’s rights issues, how we can help with that,” the 20-year-old told reporters on Friday.
Saudi Arabia has been accused of ‘sportswashing’ by a section of former players and tennis experts.
While putting across her stand on playing in the Gulf Kingdom, Gauff referenced the experience of the Black community in the US and compared the situation in Saudi to what her grandmother went through decades ago.
“I think knowing from the past from my grandmother, integrating her school, people aren’t going to like it, but obviously in the long run I think it could be better for everybody,” she said. “I really do feel like in order to ignite change, you have to start little by little. That’s how I’ve been taught growing up Black in America, knowing our history.”
Gauff, one of eight players in Riyadh for the tournament, said she was ‘so far encouraged by the progress she’d seen’ but warned: “If I felt uncomfortable or felt like nothing’s happening, then maybe I probably wouldn’t come back.”
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