PARIS, Aug 4, (AP): For all of his Grand Slam championships and other titles, for all of his time at No. 1, Novak Djokovic wanted an Olympic gold medal for Serbia, the last significant accomplishment missing from his glittering resume.

He finally got one at age 37. Doesn't matter a bit how long it took. Djokovic beat Carlos Alcaraz 7-6 (3), 7-6 (2) in an enthralling and evenly matched men’s tennis singles final at the 2024 Games on Sunday.
"I put my heart, my soul, my body, my family - my everything - on the line to win Olympic gold,” Djokovic said. "Incredible battle. Incredible fight.”

His impressive career already featured a men's-record 24 Grand Slam trophies and the most weeks spent atop the rankings by any man or woman. It also already contained a Summer Olympics medal, from 2008, but it was a bronze - and he made it clear that simply wasn't sufficient.

Until he got past bronze medalist Lorenzo Musetti of Italy in the semifinals Friday, Djokovic was 0-3 in that round at the Games. He lost to the eventual gold winner each time: Rafael Nadal in Beijing in 2008, Andy Murray in London in 2012, and Alexander Zverev in Tokyo three years ago.
Before facing Musetti, Djokovic said, "I was like, ‘OK, let’s get through this one.' That's why today, before the match, I did not feel as nervous as I would normally feel because I had secured a medal.”