Deroulede: 'I want to win so my daughter can be proud of me'
Pauline Deroulede holds a unique place among the 12 women who have been contesting this week’s NEC Wheelchair Singles Masters and ITF Wheelchair Doubles Masters.
The 32-year-old world No. 13 is a mum to daughter Ava, born to Deroulede’s partner Typhaine at the end of July 2022, and is the only mother among the players in Barcelona this year.
With Deroulede regularly away on tournament duty as she builds towards a home Paralympics at Paris 2024, the emotions shared by every athlete who is also a parent can be raw.
"It's true that the birth of my daughter changed my life; it deeply affected me,” said Deroulede, who has been contesting her second ITF Doubles Masters this week.
“Now, I have to manage the absence when I go to tournaments, and it's a real challenge, but it's part of the sacrifices at the elite level, and I've learned to accept it. And on the court, now I want to win so that my daughter can be proud of me in the future and say that her mom is a tennis champion. That's worth all the victories!"
“Now I play to win for my daughter. I want her to be proud, and it gives me a supernatural strength when I'm in a match. It feels like I have an extra weapon in my racket! Whenever possible, my wife and I arrange for them to accompany me to competitions. The year 2024 is crucial, and I'll need my entire team around me, so hopefully, they'll be with me more often.”
It’s been a bitter-sweet week for the current French women’s No. 1, who had much of her left leg amputated five years ago this week, after being run over by a car driven by an elderly driver. The actual date of the incident coincided with the penultimate day of the Catalonia Open, the ITF 1 Series tournament that preceded this year’s Masters.
“The date of my accident is still a sensitive one, and I believe it always will be; it's part of the grieving process,” Deroulede reflected. “I still feel a lot of nostalgia for the young, vibrant girl I was at that time, even though today, I've managed to find that happiness again in a different way. It's always a day when I look back at the journey with a sense of melancholy but also pride.”
The sweeter side of the anniversary date this year came in the form of victory on the tennis court at the Emilio Sanchez Academy as Deroulede and fellow Frenchwoman Emmanuelle Morch reached their second ITF 1 Series doubles final of 2023.
“Yes, that victory was symbolic. We won our match together at the same time when, five years earlier, I was hit by a car on a Parisian sidewalk. I was truly happy to win that match after a tremendous battle.”
Unfortunately for the doubles partners aiming to reach the medal podium at their home Paralympics next year, they’ve been unable to reach the same heights this week in Barcelona.
“We came close this week, with some regrets, but it's all part of the game, and we'll come back stronger,” Deroulede said. “Our team is still relatively ‘young’ and there's more work to be done, but we've already won numerous titles together and are proud to be among the top pairs in the world. The goal is to keep preparing and aim for a medal in 2024 on our home turf!”
Following Paris 2024, Deroulede will hope that she is in a position to return to the ITF Wheelchair Doubles Masters and, given her trajectory up the world rankings in the past few seasons, in 12 months time she may well have also qualified to make her NEC Wheelchair Singles Masters debut.