"Every step we take is often judged" - Iga Swiatek opens up on public scrutiny and having "weight of her country" on her shoulders

Iga Swiatek recently made an honest admission about the weight of responsibility she feels as the World No. 1. The Pole also highlighted the negative impact of social media.

Swiatek, who will soon turn 23, has been a formidable presence on the WTA tour for the past couple of years. The Pole was first noticed by the global audience when she clinched her maiden Grand Slam title at the 2020 French Open, aged just 19 at the time.

In 2022, Iga Swiatek came into her own as she created new records and became the World No. 1 for the first time. That year, the Pole won eight titles, two of which were Grand Slams in Paris and New York, and four were WTA 1000s. She soon became one of the most recognizable names in the world of sports.

The 22-year-old receives the love and support from fans all over the world, but is especially adored by her Polish fanbase. In a recently released short film called 'Beyond Number One', Swiatek spoke about the feeling the weight of her fans’ expectations.

"I don’t know, I just often have situations where I feel the whole weight of Poland on my shoulders," she confessed in the film by her clothing sponsor On Running. "My perfectionism is pretty hard on me."

"The person that you see on camera is not that different than in real life. Being an athlete now is becoming a public figure. I wasn’t aware of that when I wanted to be a tennis player. That this is going to be a big part of life," she added.

After a spectacular 2022 season, Swiatek continued her dominance for the most part in 2023, winning her third French Open title and clinching her maiden year-end championships trophy. She also finished as the year-end World No. 1 for the second time on the trot, and was the highest-paid female athlete of 2023, according to Forbes.

During the season though, the Pole was briefly dethroned by her arch-rival Aryna Sabalenka as the World No. 1. She also had to field questions about her failure to defend many of her titles from 2022.

The Pole, like several other players, also has had to deal with backlash from fans regarding her relationship with her coaching team.

"With social media everywhere and with people sharing every piece of information, it’s just more pressure because of the fact that every step we take is practically watched and often judged by people," she admitted.

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Iga Swiatek: "I hope that fans will understand that I am human being too"

Iga Swiatek pictured at the 2024 Italian Open (Image source: Getty)

Iga Swiatek said that she is grateful for the support she receives, but urged the fans to be empathetic towards the tennis players who work day in and day out on the court, behind the scenes.

"I am happy that both Warsaw and the whole Poland in a sense support me so much and I hope that we will in a way feel more empathy towards these players who play sports every day and whom we only see for a fraction of the time on TV screens," she said in the short film.

"I hope that fans will understand that I am human being too," she added.

Iga Swiatek is now gearing up for a three-peat at the 2024 French Open, having won the trophy the past two seasons, after her maiden win in 2020. The Pole will enter the tournament as the heavy favorite, having recently won the Madrid Open and the Italian Open.