Emotional tribute for Nadal: a farewell that goes into history

Emotional tribute for Nadal: a farewell that goes into history

Paris, Frankreich - On May 25, 2025, Rafael Nadal was honored for his outstanding performance in tennis during the French Open in Paris. The 38-year-old Spaniard, who won the prestigious tournament a total of 14 times, got into tears in the emotional ceremony. During his acceptance speech, Nadal emphasized that Roland Garros was the most important tennis court of his career and thanked his fans and his teammates, including his uncle Toni, who made a significant contribution to his early success. The spectators celebrated it for minutes, while many fans were wearing brown T-shirts with the inscription "Merci Rafa", and some formed with white T-shirts hearts and the word "Rafa".

For special honor, Nadal's footprint on the Center Court of the French Open was embedded for eternity, a gesture of the French tennis federation in order to honor his unforgettable achievements. In addition, there was an exhibition in his honor, which documented the development of his 19-year career. Numerous tennis sizes were also present during the ceremony, including Nadal's long -time rivals Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray, who hugged him. Current stars such as the world rankings of Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiadek were also in the audience and showed their appreciation.

the farewell to Nadal

It was a significant event, especially since these are Nadal's last memories of the French Open. In his last match at this tournament, he had no chance against Alexander Zverev last year. He returned for the Olympic Games in the summer of 2024, but left Novak Djokovic in the second round. The tennis world finally had to say goodbye to Nadal in November 2024 when he ended his career at the Davis Cup finals in Malaga. Overall, Nadal can look back on an impressive record of 22 Grand Slam titles, with his last title won in Paris in 2022.

Jannik Sinner praised Nadal as a model during the ceremony and pointed out how much his way of having influenced today's generation of players. The first day of the French Open 2025 became the climax, not only because of the tribute for Nadal, but also due to dominant appearances by players such as Aryna Sabalenka, Frances Tiafoe and Lorenzo Musetti in their round matches.