Participating in the Olympic Games is a dream come true for every athlete, regardless of the sport. Representing one’s country on the sporting world’s highest stage gives a sense of pride and only a few are able to realize this dream. On the other hand, there exists a section of athletes who prefer playing in regular tournaments while giving the Olympic Games a miss. This is a widespread tradition in tennis especially, with the Olympics not awarding ranking points to players for playing in the mega-event. As a result, the likes of Ben Shelton and Frances Tiafoe joined a host of stars from the past who decided to skip the Olympics for their personal ambitions.

The likes of Andy Roddick, Sam Querrey, Mardy Fish, and a host of other players had skipped the quadrennial event in order to focus their attention on the regular calendar. Furthermore, the Olympic Games didn’t award any prize money, something which put off many tennis stars. Earlier this week, Querrey was present on the ‘Nothing Major’ podcast in which he indirectly termed Shelton and Tiafoe ‘anti-Olympics’.

Talking about Shelton and Tiafoe’s absence from the Paris Olympics, Querrey mentioned, “I mean, you saw our Olympic team this year. I think Shelton’s not going, Frances isn’t going, and other players have opted to not go in the past t0o. So it’s not it’s not just like me who’s anti-Olympics. I just like, sometimes, I feel like I want the light to be on like the true Olympic sports.”

Interestingly, Taylor Fritz, who opted to play in the Paris Olympics, is set to lose some crucial ranking points after the mega-event. Despite winning the bronze medal, he is in for a disappointment as he will lose 430 points and slip two positions to the 13th spot on the ATP rankings chart. As a result, the likes of Shelton and Tiafoe want to keep their focus on the Tour amid a complicated schedule.

Frances Tiafoe and Ben Shelton reason out their Paris Olympics absence

After snubbing the Olympic Games, the American duo is currently seen in action at the Citi Open in Washington. Both Shelton and Tiafoe have managed to dig deep in the tournament and will play their semifinal encounters later today. Although there was disappointment in both camps over missing the Olympics, the two provided justification for skipping the mega-event.

Shelton revealed, “I’ve thought about it a lot. At the moment I can say that I’m quite inclined not to go this year, in case I qualify. I think they fit into the tennis schedule in a complicated way.” On the other hand, Tiafoe mentioned, “I care way more about the Open, being as prepared for the Open as possible. It wasn’t easy. It wasn’t easy, for sure. It still isn’t. I probably won’t be able to watch any (Olympic tennis), to be honest with you.”

However, it won’t be their only chance at participating in the Olympics as future possibilities await the American duo. Nonetheless, for now, they need to focus on their last four encounters at the Citi Open. Shelton will take on Flavio Cobolli of Italy and Tiafoe will face his compatriot, Sebastian Korda for a place in the summit clash.