UN human rights office condemns online racist abuse of tennis player Coco Gauff

The United Nations human rights office has condemned online racist abuse targeting American tennis player Coco Gauff. Both The Guardian and Reuters reported the condemnation.

The abuse followed a disputed point in one of Gauff's matches this week. The Guardian describes it as a "controversial point". Reuters describes it as a "replayed point" that "sparked a backlash".

What is reported

According to The Guardian, the point came during Gauff's China Open match against Sun Xinran on Monday. The newspaper reports that the abusive messages were sent to Gauff on social media.

The UN human rights office, led by High Commissioner Volker Türk, issued its condemnation in a social media post on Saturday, according to The Guardian. The office also called for solidarity to help push back against racism and sexism, the newspaper reported.

According to The Guardian, Gauff lost to Elise Mertens two days after the match against Sun. The newspaper describes Gauff as a two-time Grand Slam champion ranked No. 4 in the world.

What each side says

UN human rights office: The Guardian quoted the office's social media post as saying the messages were "appalling and illustrate that Black female athletes are specifically targeted for vitriol and racial abuse". The newspaper also quoted the office as saying: "There is no place in sport for racial or sexist slurs and abuse." It added, according to The Guardian: "Players, coaches and sports bodies need to stand up for those facing such attacks and fans need to push back against those who sully sport with racism and sexism."

Coco Gauff: The Guardian quoted Gauff as saying she received an "insane" amount of racist comments on social media after the point. According to the newspaper, she also said she had "no energy" and felt as though she would pass out during her loss to Mertens.

What the reports do not include

The reports reviewed by Vocemundi do not describe what happened on the disputed point or why it was replayed. They do not identify which platforms carried the abuse or who sent the messages. They do not quantify the abuse beyond Gauff's own description. They do not say where Gauff made her comments.

The reports do not include any response from the WTA, China Open organisers, the social media platforms or Sun Xinran. They do not say whether any action, such as account removals or investigations, has been taken. They do not include any response from Gauff to the UN statement. Only a summary of the Reuters report was available to Vocemundi, so its full details could not be checked against The Guardian's account.

Analysis

A statement from the UN human rights office places an incident in a tennis match within a wider debate about online abuse of athletes, particularly Black women. The office's call is directed at players, coaches, sports bodies and fans, not at any single organisation. Several outcomes are possible. Tennis authorities, the tournament or social media platforms could respond publicly or take action, or the matter could pass without formal follow-up. The reports reviewed by Vocemundi do not show any such responses so far. Key open questions include what happened on the replayed point and whether those who sent the messages can be identified.

Produced by the Vocemundi newsroom with AI assistance.