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Coco Gauff has spoken about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in Gaza and advocated for peace in the region.
Gauff sat down for an interview with The National and spoke about a range of issues, including the war in Gaza. An attack by Hamas, a Gaza-based militant group in southern Israel, in October prompted an armed response from Israel, which is still carrying aerial strikes and ground operations in Gaza.
The conflict has led to the deaths of nearly 30,000 people and sees no end in sight. In light of these atrocities, WTA World No. 3 Coco Gauff raised her voice to call for peace in Gaza and the end of the armed conflict. The young American advocated for awareness on the issue and raising funds to help those affected by the conflict.
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“I feel like it would be ignorant to say I’m not aware, I’m very aware of everything that's going on in Gaza. For me, I always say I pray for peace in the region. And I really don't like what's going on. For me, it's sometimes troubling to live the life I live, in knowing that so many kids and innocent people are dying on both ends, but especially in what's going on in Gaza and the occupation that’s happening…” Gauff said.
“In my position, I know there's not much I can do other than raise awareness and donate. So that's what I encourage everyone to do and just pray for peace and demand peace and demand that this stops happening,” she continued.
Coco Gauff's comments quickly went viral on social media. Fans hailed her for using her platform to speak up on an important issue and join Tunisia's Ons Jabeur in calling for peace in Gaza. Many urged other players to follow Jabeur and Gauff's lead in the Israel-Gaza conflict as they have done with the Russia-Ukraine war.
"I’m glad someone in tennis is talking about this. After all we rightly heard about peace in Ukraine from tennis players, it sucks that besides Gauff, it seems like there’s basically been radio silence," a fan wrote on X.
"Finally someone in tennis is talking about other than Ons Jabeur. Well done @CocoGauff," posted another fan.
Here are more fan reactions to Coco Gauff's call for peace in Gaza:
Coco Gauff - "I'm really grateful that my dad found a way to put me on this stage"
During her interview with The National, Coco Gauff gave insights into her early tennis life and how her father Corey played the most instrumental in pushing her into the sport.
The reigning US Open champion revealed that her father once told her that he never thought Coco would have a career in tennis as it was not popular in the Black community and was super-expensive.
“He’s said, ‘I never thought in a million years my daughter would play tennis’ because to be honest, in the black community, it's not a major sport, and it's super expensive. So I'm really grateful that my dad found a way to put me on this stage and hopefully, I can always make him proud,” Coco Gauff said.
The American No. 1 gave this interview ahead of her campaign at the 2024 Dubai Tennis Championships. Gauff is seeded No. 3 and will face Elisabetta Cocciaretto in the opening round.
The 19-year-old reached the semifinal of the WTA 1000 tournament last year. She bettered Aliaksandra Sasnovich, Elena Rybakina (via walkover), and Madison Keys before losing to Iga Swiatek.
