Novak Djokovic has noticed difference between Olympic crowd compared to Roland Garros and he likes it

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Novak Djokovic likes playing in front of an Olympics crowd at Roland Garros and compared it to those who come to the French Open at the same venue.

Much like the 2012 Games in London where the tennis event was played at Wimbledon, Roland Garros is hosting the tournament at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.

The difference in crowd at the Olympics and the clay court Grand Slam has been a talking point among some of the players.

Djokovic has been the latest player to discuss the crowd dynamic after reaching the quater-finals at the Olympics for the fourth time in his career.

What did Novak Djokovic say about the crowds at the Paris Olympics?

Djokovic has plenty of experience playing at the Olympics, after making his debut at the Beijing Games in 2008. He knows what it is like to play in front of a mixed crowd with plenty of fans representing their respective countries.

This is something Djokovic loves to see when playing at the Olympic Games and post-match he took some time to explain the differences between those who come to watch the French Open Grand Slam and crowds at the Olympics.

“It’s a great honour to represent your country at an Olympics. Amazing, incredible sporting competition. We play Roland Garros at this stadium but just the crowd, the atmosphere, the stadium,” the 24-time Grand Slam champion told Eurosport.

“Everything is different and in a good way. Of course, the Roland Garros crowd is also great and knowledgeable and passionate about tennis, but the Olympic crowd is something different.

“People from all over the world come and travel to support their respective nations and athletes from their countries. I think there are so many different people from different nationalities and it’s just beautiful to see.”

What is Novak Djokovic’s Olympic Games record?

In the first of his five Olympic Games in Beijing, Djokovic reached the semi-finals, where he was beaten by Rafael Nadal who went on to claim the gold medal. Djokovic had to settle for the bronze after defeating America’s James Blake 6-3, 7-6(4). 

Four years later, Djokovic once again lost in the semi-finals, this time to Andy Murray who claimed the first of his two gold medals at London 2012. 

He was unable to claim a medal and finished fourth after losing the bronze medal match to Juan Martin del Potro, who eliminated Djokovic in the opening round of the 2016 Rio Olympics.

At the delayed Tokyo Games in 2021, none of Djokovic’s previous Olympics conquerors were present, but he still came up short. He lost to Alexander Zverev in the semi-finals and finished fourth following a defeat to Spain’s Pablo Carreno Busta in three sets.