'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Caroline Garcia was bestowed with the medal of honor by the city of Lyon on Monday (December 5) for her WTA Finals win last month.
The World No. 4 produced a dream week at the season-ending event in Fort Worth, Texas. Her only loss during the competition came against top seed Iga Swiatek in the group stage. Garcia recovered to beat Maria Sakkari in the semifinals and Aryna Sabalenka in the final to land the biggest title of her career.
Recognizing her triumph, the mayor of Lyon, Gregory Doucet, presented Garcia with the medal at a glittering ceremony. He tweeted (translated from French):
"Very proud to give you the medal of honour of the City of #Lyon dear @CaroGarcia. The excellence of your game and your perseverance make you a wonderful ambassador for Lyon sport. Keep writing your legend and making us dream. #FlyWithCaro"
Garcia, a Lyon resident, is the second Frenchwoman to win the WTA Finals, emulating current Roland Garros tournament director Amelie Mauresmo (2005).
Caroline Garcia's 2022 season highlights
Caroline Garcia enjoyed the best season of her career in 2022, going 45-20. She won four titles during the year, culminating with her WTA Finals triumph.
After a first-round exit at the Australian Open and a few early exits, the World No. 4 won her first title of the year on grass at Bad Homburg (beating Bianca Andreescu). Garcia made the second week at Wimbledon before winning the Poland Open title in Warsaw on clay (beating Ana Bogdan).
The then 35th-ranked Frenchwoman then won eight straight matches, including two in qualifying, to win the Cincinnati title (beating Petra Kvitova). A maiden Grand Slam title was not to be as the in-form Garcia lost to Ons Jabeur in the US Open semifinals.
Following a few more early exits, Garcia caught fire at the WTA Finals, winning three of her matches in straight sets to reign supreme. The triumph made her the only WTA player to win titles on all three surfaces this year.
An elated Garcia said after beating Sabalenka in the final:
"Today was an amazing final, so much intensity on every single point... I’m very proud of how I kept my mind focused one point at a time, one game at a time... I managed my emotions one point at a time and it made a difference."
The Frenchwoman will now look to win a Grand Slam next year to complete her set of big titles.
