Jiri Lehecka pens emotional statement after injury rules him out of Paris Olympics

The priority that tennis players places on competing at the Olympic Games is a hot topic of debate every four years, and it's no different in 2024. High-profile withdrawals and opt-outs from Paris, from Aryna Sabalenka and Andrey Rublev to Ons Jabeur and Madison Keys, have dominated headlines a month ahead of the tennis competition, which begins at Roland Garros on July 27.

Another player to withdraw is 25th-ranked Czech Jiri Lehecka, but this one came not of his own accord. The 22-year-old penned an emotional statement on social media this week after a lingering back injury ruled him out of officially of his Olympic debut.

"I'm very sad that I won't be able to compete at the Olympics in Paris next month," he wrote. "Since I was a little boy watching the Olympics from home, having fun playing with my grandfather, I would have never imagened that I would qualify for the biggest sporting event in the world.

"It has always been a dream for me to represent my country and it was clearly one of my main goals for this season. I've done everything I can to have a chance to play, but my body is still not ready to compete at the highest level."

Lehecka, 22, hasn't played since retiring in the semifinals of the Mutua Madrid Open, where he beat Rafael Nadal and Daniil Medvedev en route to his first career Masters 1000 semifinal. But the youngster only played six completed games against Felix Auger-Aliassime before the malady cut the match short, and relegated him to the sidelines since then.

The world No. 25 was forced to withdraw from Roland Garros as a result of his injury, and also pulled out of Wimbledon, which begins on July 1, earlier this month.

"I wish the best of luck to all Czech athletes who will participate and I will cheer for them from home," Lehecka added. "I'm sure they will make us proud."