Heavy financial investment as a junior paying off for Rio tennis player
By Anil Jhalli
Age: 24
Olympics: First
Twitter: @GabyDabrowski
SCHEDULE
Aug. 6-14
Women’s Doubles competition
Matches begin daily @ 9:45 a.m. ET
From coaching to cheering and supporting the costs of her training, family has played a big part in Gabriela Dabrowski’s rise in the tennis world. Now set to compete in her first Olympics in Rio, the 24-year-old says she owes a big part of her passion for the Games to her family roots as well.
“Coming from a half-Polish background, getting a chance to go and play in the Olympics means everything to me,” explains Dabrowski, who will compete in the women’s doubles event alongside Eugenie Bouchard, though she had to wait for her Canadian counterpart to give the final thumbs up just weeks before the Games.
“I didn’t want to get so excited at first, because I was 100% reliant on whether or not Eugenie was going to go,” adds the world’s #44-ranked doubles player. “There is a lot of concerns over Zika and it is totally understandable.”
Dabrowski has been busy in the lead-up to Rio. There was a round of 16 appearance in mixed doubles in early July at Wimbledon – where she and her regular Spanish partner beat Bouchard in their opening women’s doubles match as well. Then came a tournament in Washington followed by a short appearance at the Rogers Cup in Montreal.
Dabrowski has managed to carve out a stable and successful pro tennis career in recent years. She earned the third WTA title of her career at the June 11-16 Mallorca Open (in her Spanish partner María José Martínez Sánchez’s homeland).
Dabrowski has accumulated a fair bit of Games experience along the way too. She was a double-medallist at the 2009 Canada Games, and attended both the 2011 and 2015 Pan Am Games, winning gold and silver medals last summer in Toronto.
In contrast to many of the sport’s top players, Dabrowski says nothing compares to representing her country in international competition.
“I’ve been watching the Olympics for as long as I can remember and I’ve imagined what it would be like getting a chance to go,” reflects the Ottawa native who grew up in Blossom Park. “It is the biggest stage for any athlete.”
Getting to this point, however, has seen its share of obstacles and hardships, including draining travel, deciding which tournaments to play and which to skip, and the financial aspect – Dabrowski’s parents having invested considerable sums into her tennis development as a junior (which she says they won’t let her repay).
“You have to invest a lot to see a return,” highlights Dabrowski, who’s earned just over $100,000 US in prize money so far this season. “You can’t do things half-assed. You have to have the right people in your life and there needs to be the right balance.”
Though many along the way have helped and guided her, Dabrowski says no one has had the same kind of impact as her #1 fans. As she gets set for her Olympic debut, Dabrowski thanks her parents, Yurek and Wanda, for all the sacrifices and support since she started playing tennis at age 7.
“They have been there for me the whole time, every step of the way,” Dabrowski underlines. “I know now how much they did for me so I can live my dream.”
Advice for young aspiring Olympians:
“Make sure whatever you choose to do, it will become a good and satisfying path. Keep going. If the sport is something you want to do, keep at it. No matter how hard it gets, never give up.”