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Taylor Townsend has reacted to Coco Gauff's striking on-court picture taken by photographer Simon Kelly. The image highlighted her status as the highest-paid female athlete.
With the 2024 season concluded in most sports, Spotico released its list of top-earning female athletes for the year. Coco Gauff stood out, earning an impressive $30.4 million from her victories and endorsements. Views Magazine shared this achievement in a post, alongside the earnings of other female athletes.
On Thursday, Taylor Townsend shared the Views Magazine's post on her Instagram story. In her caption, she praised photographer Simon Kelly for capturing a striking shot of her during the 2024 WTA Finals, where the 20-year-old defeated Zheng Qinwen to claim the title.
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“Pic goes crazy. @Simon Kelly about to take over the tennis world” - Taylor Townsend captioned
Simon Kelly, who usually works in the National Football League (NFL), started taking tennis photos during the 2024 Atlanta Open. He was introduced to the sport when he covered an exhibition match between Taylor Townsend and Sloane Stephens. Since then, Kelly has expanded his portfolio, capturing memorable moments at the US Open and photographing American tennis stars like Coco Gauff and Ben Shelton alongside Townsend.
During the 2024 season, Kelly traveled to the WTA Finals in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where he captured Townsend reaching the doubles final with her partner, Kateřina Siniaková. He also attended the Billie Jean King Cup in Málaga, Spain, where the 28-year-old represented the United States.
Taylor Townsend - “People argue with me, to tell me that I'm Coco Gauff”
In 2020, during the height of the Black Lives Matter movement following widespread protests over the death of George Floyd, Taylor Townsend addressed racism and called for change in an episode of Tennis United. She shared that people had mistaken her for Gauff, showing the stereotype that all Black people look the same, which takes away individual identity.
“It's not a united place. We lose our identity of who we are because there can only be one. I've had people argue with me, to tell me that I'm Coco Gauff. All of us look the same, all of us are built the same.” Taylor Townsend said (7:00)
Further speaking about racism, she said that she is often mistaken for tennis greats Venus or Serena Williams and faces extra security checks to prove she belongs.
"Everybody sees a black person and assumes that it's Venus [Williams] or Serena [Williams] - I've been literally all of them, except for myself.
I'm walking through, and somebody has to check my bag, check my credential, check my coaches' bag. It's extra security, extra precautions that need to be taken to make sure that I belong.” She added
Taylor Townsend and Coco Gauff have faced each other only once on the WTA Tour. It was in the quarterfinals of the 2019 Charleston Open, where Townsend emerged victorious.
