Casper Ruud can be proud of his Olympics efforts after being knocked out by bronze medal match loser Felix Auger-Aliassime.
Ruud was among three dark horses for Olympic gold, but his tournament ended at the quarter-final stage.
The Norwegian lost 6-4, 7-6(10-8), 6-3 to Auger-Aliassime at the Olympics, with the latter then losing to Lorenzo Musetti for the bronze medal.
Rafael Nadal praised Ruud after their Swedish Open doubles pairing, as they prepared for the Olympics in Paris.
Both are proven players on the clay courts, with Nadal a 14-time French Open champion, while Ruud is a two-time runner up at Roland Garros.
Casper Ruud shares his plans for after tennis
The Norwegian did, however, fall short in adding to his titles tally for 2024, having won two titles this season.
Sitting ninth in the world rankings, he has 12 titles to his name, but Ruud still has ambitions of going professional in another sport in the future.
“I envy the guys that are professional golfers, all the good courses they get to play,” said Ruud, as quoted by the PGA Tour. “Some nights I think, ‘Oh if I could trade for one day, I would be happy to do it.’
“I doubt it is likely to happen, but it’s a realistic dream of mine… after my tennis career I will have plenty of years and chances to play all the courses I would love to play.”
Is Viktor Hovland giving Casper Ruud golfing tips at the Olympics?
Ruud is certainly getting a great idea of what it is like to play golf at the Olympics, having been sharing a room with compatriot Viktor Hovland at the event.
Hovland has, however, also fallen short in the golf, with the Norwegian entering the final round tied for 37th place.
But Ruud can still learn a lot from his Olympics roommate, with Hovland a six-time winner on the PGA Tour.
The former has, however, quickly turned his attention to his next tennis event, with Ruud already in Montreal for the Canadian Open.
But golf is clearly a real passion of his, with Ruud noting on Instagram that he has an account solely for golf content.
Receive exclusive tennis news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
