The 24-time major champion had been unsuccessful at the Olympics in his four previous campaigns.<\/p>\n
He earned a bronze medal in 2008 at the Beijing games, lost in the opening round in Rio in 2016, and finished fourth at both London 2012 and Tokyo 2020.<\/p>\n
That all changed a year ago, when Djokovic<\/a> struck a winning forehand past Alcaraz<\/a>, before falling to his knees in tears. <\/p>\n Reacting to the match point a year later, Djokovic said: \u201cOh my gosh, I\u2019ve watched this video probably one million times. Not recently, now I\u2019ve made a little break, but now you\u2019re inspiring me to watch it again and again.<\/p>\n \u201cIt just stands out as probably the highlight of my career, considering the amount of time and years that I waited for that \u2014 or haven\u2019t waited \u2014 I worked for it.<\/p>\n \u201cBut the heartbreaking losses in the previous four Olympic Games that I played, unable to make that final step and reach the finals and fight for gold.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was the only big accolade that I missed, that I haven\u2019t achieved in my career, and then coming at the age of 37, it is something very unique, unforgettable.<\/p>\n \u201cThe scenes of having my wife and my children there to witness that, to celebrate and achieve that with them, it\u2019s just something that fills my heart with pure happiness and joy, and I\u2019ll remember that moment forever.\u201d<\/p>\n Novak Djokovic\u2019s route to the gold medal at the Paris Olympics <\/p>\n Djokovic\u2019s opening match at the Olympics last year was against Matthew Ebden of Australia, who he dominated 6-0, 6-1.<\/p>\n In round two, he had his last-ever meeting with Rafael Nadal<\/a>, and extended his lead in their head-to-head to 31-29 with a straight-sets win over the Spaniard. <\/p>\n RoundOpponentFinalCarlos Alcaraz (Spain)SemifinalsLorenzo Musetti (Italy)QuarterfinalsStefanos Tsitsipas (Greece)Third RoundDominik Koepfer (Germany)Second RoundRafael Nadal (Spain)First RoundMatthew Ebden (Australia)Novak Djokovic\u2019s 2024 singles campaign at the Paris Olympics<\/p>\n After a victory over Germany\u2019s Dominik Koepfer in the third round, Serbia met Greece in the quarterfinals, with Stefanos Tsitsipas<\/a> flying the flag. <\/p>\n![\"Novak](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/GettyImages-2165390484-1024x666.jpg\")
Photo by Clive Brunskill\/Getty ImagesNovak Djokovic reacts to winning a gold medal one year later<\/p>\n