The International Tennis Federation announced on Monday that former Top 10 star and Olympic bronze medalist Alicia Molik has been awarded a wild card for the Summer Olympics.
Molik, whose ranking has slipped to No. 118, is one of six players given ITF Places entries into Beijing.
“This is probably the best news I’ve had since 2004,” said Molik. “I have played in two Olympics and I have to say they’re the absolute highlight of my career. Nothing comes close to playing in the Olympics, representing your country. It is the most amazing experience any individual can have. It was always a childhood dream of mine.”
ITF Places are awarded to players who do not meet the direct acceptance requirements of the tournament but who, in the view of the ITF Olympic Committee, meet other criteria that would enhance the field for the 2008 competition.
Maria Koryttseva, Yung-Jan Chan, Ayumi Morita, Nuria Llagostera-Vives, and Selima Sfar were also included by the ITF.
The entry of these players has been endorsed by their respective National Associations and National Olympic Committees.
“Each of the players who has been awarded an ITF Place brings special qualities to the field for the 2008 Olympic Tennis Event,” said ITF President Francesco Ricci Bitti.
“Some of the players are young competitors from under-represented parts of the world while others are former medallists or long-standing participants in their country’s Davis Cup and Fed Cup efforts. Their desire to represent their countries in Beijing – and the desire of their countries to be represented by them – is in the true spirit of Olympic competition.”
