Following Caroline Garcia's shock retirement announcement, here are 5 unknown facts about former World No. 4

Caroline Garcia announced on Friday, May 23, that she's all set to retire from tennis this year. She will kick off her farewell tour at the upcoming French Open 2025, followed by a few more tournaments over the course of the season. Since turning pro in 2011, she has had a memorable career.

Garcia peaked at No. 4 in the singles rankings. A semifinal showing at the US Open 2022 and a quarterfinal appearance at the French Open 2017 were her best results at the Majors. She won the WTA Finals 2022 and three WTA 1000 titles, two in 2017 and one in 2022. She won a total of 11 career titles in singles.

The 31-year-old enjoyed considerable success in doubles as well. She won the French Open in 2016 and 2022 with compatriot Kristina Mladenovic and finished as the runner-up with her at the US Open 2016. She won a total of eight doubles titles and peaked at No. 2 in the rankings.

While people are quite familiar with Garcia's achievements, there are some facets of her life that remain unknown to the public. On that note, here are five lesser-known facts about her:

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#1. Caroline Garcia recently did a course from Harvard Business School

Garcia enrolled in the Harvard Business School's 2024-25 Crossover Intro Business program last year. The course prepares players for a life after retirement as well as giving active players an idea of how to maximize their earnings in an ideal manner.

Garcia's program started in September 2024, and she worked in collaboration with two graduate student mentors. Most of the coursework was online. Her studies came to an end in March this year, and she enjoyed the experience. Speaking to the WTA, she stated that learning about new things fills her with confidence.

"People's minds work differently, and what's important to me might be second for you or third for someone else. Together, that makes a business work. This helps me with building my identity of only being a tennis player. Learning new things gives me confidence. So it's really important to me to go through this," Garcia said.

Garcia's signing up for this course was perhaps an indication of things to come, especially in light of her retirement announcement. Pursuing educational opportunities wasn't the only new experience undertaken by her in recent times.

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#2. Caroline Garcia started her own podcast last year

Caroline Garcia at the French Open 2024. (Photo: Getty)

Garcia, together with her fiancé Borja Duran, launched their own podcast last year, the "Tennis Insider Club". The podcast has had several notable players as guests since its inception, such as Ons Jabeur, Andrey Rublev, and Alize Cornet, among others, as well as Serena Williams' ex-coach Patrick Mouratoglou.

The discussions on the podcast touch upon various topics beyond tennis. Garcia was noted for her candid demeanour during her interviews, and the same quality has helped her as a host. She has improved her interviewing skills a lot since she started hosting the podcast, and with the support of her fiancé, this has been a successful venture for her.

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#3. Caroline Garcia previously struggled with an eating disorder

Professional athletes are under a lot of stress to put their best foot forward week after week. Being in such a high-pressure environment often leads to unfavorable consequences if the stress isn't managed properly. Garcia endured plenty of ups and downs in her career, and reached her breaking point a few years ago.

In an interview with L'Equipe, she outlined her battle with bulimia nervosa, an eating disorder. The disorder involves binge eating or overeating. It is often followed by expelling the food, usually by inducing vomiting. Garcia added that she started eating a lot in order to fill the "void".

"Everyone is different. Some will stop eating and for me it was the opposite: I used to take refuge in food. You feel so empty, so sad, that you need to fill yourself. It came from the distress of not managing to do what I wanted to do on court, of not winning anymore, of suffering physically," Garcia said.

However, Garcia quickly realized that she was heading down a dark path and took steps to set things right. She took a break from tennis, spoke to her close ones, and got help. She has been in a better place since then.

"Since I've been taking time for myself, it happens less. And when it happens, I accept it better and feel less guilty. Allowing myself some regular indulgences helps me avoid having too many of these cravings," she added.

Caroline Garcia's honesty about this sensitive topic was applauded by her peers, who sent her their support once she opened up about the matter. She has since spoken of mental health issues as well and shut down her season early last year due to anxiety and panic attacks.

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#4. Caroline Garcia has Spanish ancestry

Caroline Garcia at the Qatar Open 2025. (Photo: Getty)

Garcia's grandparents are originally from the Costa Blanca region of Spain. Her father was born in French Algeria before eventually settling in France. She was born in Saint-Germain-en-Laye before moving to Bron, a suburb of Lyon.

Garcia returned to her Spanish roots from time to time and spent a decent amount of time training in Torrevieja, Spain, in 2017, away from the spotlight in France. She currently spends most of her time in Lyon.

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#5. Caroline Garcia is an avid book reader

Garcia loves to unwind from her hectic life as a tennis player with a good book. She's a huge bookworm and loves to read whenever possible. She doesn't mind reading about tennis either and loved former World No. 1 Ashleigh Barty's memoir, and expressed her love for the same on social media.

Caroline Garcia's love for reading served her well while pursuing her course at Harvard. With retirement on the horizon, she's going to have more time to devote to reading.