A little bit of self-persuasion went a very long way for Coco Gauff, whose victory at the French Open gave the 21-year-old American a trophy she has long

Paris in the spring, the red clay of Roland-Garros, and the chance to become a French Open champion.It was 2022 and she was still a teenager who’d never won a major. But before she knew it, the whole thing was over.

American Coco Gauff celebrates after winning her women's singles final match against Belarus' Aryna Sabalenka at the French Open tennis tournament at the Roland-Garros Complex in Paris on June 7, 2025.