Caroline Garcia said she was abused online after her first-round defeat at the US Open, saying “unhealthy betting” is one of the main reasons players are attacked on social media.
The Frenchwoman lost 6-1, 6-4 on Tuesday to unseeded Mexican Renata Zarazúa, who has only reached the second round of a Grand Slam tournament once before in her career.
Garcia shared snippets of some of the abuse she received on social media, where not only the 30-year-old was targeted, but also her family. She also took social media platforms to task for not doing enough to filter abuse while allowing anonymous users to go unchecked.
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“Social media platforms are not preventing it, despite AI being in a very advanced position. Tournaments and sports continue to collaborate with gambling companies, who continue to attract new people to unhealthy gambling,” Garcia wrote on Instagram. “The days of cigarette brands sponsoring sports are long gone. Yet here we are promoting gambling companies, who are actively destroying some people’s lives. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying they should be banned.
“But maybe we shouldn’t promote them. And if someone decides to say these kinds of things to me in public, they could get into legal trouble. So why are we free to do anything online? Shouldn’t we reconsider online anonymity?”
Garcia said the messages hurt players, especially after a tough loss when they were already “emotionally broken,” while also questioning how younger players would react to such abuse. “I’m just a normal girl who works really hard and tries my best, I have tools and I’ve done work to protect myself from this hate. But still, this is not okay. It really worries me when I think about younger players coming up, having to go through this.”
Garcia received support from fellow players including world No. 1 Iga Swiatek and Madison Keys, who both thanked her for her comments. American Jessica Pegula said: “The constant death threats and family threats are normal now, win or lose.”