Djokovic Not Thinking About Retirement, Eyes Title Defence at LA 2028 Olympics
Novak Djokovic has revealed that defending his Olympic title at the 2028 Los Angeles Games is one of his long-term ambitions, even though the Serbian star will be 41 years old when the Olympics take place.
Djokovic captured the gold medal at the Paris 2024 Olympics, defeating Carlos Alcaraz in the final—a victory he later described as the greatest achievement of his illustrious career. Now, at 38, the 24-time Grand Slam champion says he is still motivated to continue competing and hopes to be part of the LA Games.
“That’s one of the long-term goals, to reach the Olympics. That would be nice,” Djokovic told reporters after his second-round win over Kamil Majchrzak at Indian Wells on Saturday.
“It’s still a long way away. At my age and at this stage of my career, every year feels longer than it does for younger players. But I’ll try to make it. It’s definitely one of the motivations, so I’ll try to be there,” he added.
If Djokovic manages to compete in Los Angeles and successfully defend his title, he would become only the second man in history to win back-to-back Olympic singles gold medals. The only player to achieve that feat so far is Andy Murray, who won gold at London 2012 and Rio 2016.
Djokovic previously won a bronze medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics before finally securing the gold he had long chased in Paris.
Currently ranked world number three, Djokovic returned to competition at Indian Wells for the first time since his strong run at the Australian Open, where he defeated Jannik Sinner in a dramatic five-set semi-final.
After a five-week break from competitive tennis, Djokovic admitted he needed time to settle back into rhythm before defeating Majchrzak 4–6, 6–1, 6–2.
“It’s good to be back on tour,” he said. “After five weeks without an official match, I knew the first one would be tricky, especially with challenging conditions,” he added, referring to the windy weather in the California desert.
Djokovic will next face American Aleksandar Kovacevic in the third round at Indian Wells. But with his sights already partly set on Los Angeles 2028, the tennis legend has made it clear that retirement is not on his mind anytime soon.
