NEW YORK: No one had won a Golden Slam in wheelchair tennis until Sunday, when it happened twice.
And Dylan Alcott has never celebrated his victory the way he did.
Alcott and Diede de Groot both won US Open titles, adding them this year to their victories at the Australian Open, the French Open and Wimbledon, as well as their gold medals at the Paralympics.
He was awarded during the men’s final between Novak Djokovic and Daniil Medvedev. Alcott held up his trophy, poured a can of beer into it, and then gulped it down as the crowd roared.
The Australian said he always drinks beer out of a trophy when he wins a Grand Slam title, adding that he had about 20 after his win last weekend in Tokyo.
I just haven’t done it in front of 20,000 people and 50 million people, Alcott said. “After winning the Golden Slam there was no chance of Arthur Ashe putting that beer skull on him.
I saw that I got a smile from Novak and Medvedev, action that was good. I don’t want to be a beer in New York tonight, because you’re going to be destroyed. that’s for sure.
Alcott won the quad singles division by defeating Niels Wink of the Netherlands 7-5, 6-2. De Groot defeated No. 2 seed Yui Kameiji of Japan 6-3, 6-2 in the women’s singles final.
Her celebration was more subdued, but the slam was just as meaningful to the 24-year-old from the Netherlands.
De Groot said it’s so special to be the first to actually get that title. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to forget it.
Steffi Graf, in 1988, was the only tennis player to win all four Grand Slam titles and a gold medal in the same year. This was made possible on the most recent wheelchair tour, with Wimbledon not adding a wheelchair tournament until 2016.
De Groot got his win earlier on Sunday before Alcott, a 30-year-old who won a Paralympic gold medal in basketball in 2008, before turning to tennis, followed him.
No man has ever won a Golden Slam. Nobody ever got a chance, Alcott said. I had that opportunity. What a special moment For this I trained my whole life. So I really enjoyed the experience.
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