Julia Riera and the end of an unforgettable week in Brisbane: from organizing raffles to pay for travel to being one step away from the top 100

Argentina Giulia Riera21 years old and a surprise at the WTA 500 tournament in Brisbane after reaching the round of 16, he was eliminated after losing on Thursday against the Czech Linda Noskova in three sets, 6-1, 6-7 (4/7) and 6-3, in a competition between the Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka, 2nd in the world, and the Kazakh Elena Rybakina, 4th in the ranking.

The Pergamino native reached this stage after achieving the biggest triumph of her short career by defeating the Russian Ekaterina Alexandrova, 21st in the world ranking, 6-3 and 6-4. Thanks to this huge performance, it was one step away from the top 100a position that will be updated next Monday but which would bring it closer to achieving this objective.

For the 21-year-old who aspires to take part in major tournaments on the circuit, and who has already set the goal of playing her first Grand Slam, becoming a professional tennis player has not been an easy task. In an uphill economic context for the majority of Argentine athletes trying to make a name for themselves on a global level, Juli also had to face this difficulty due to the lack of resources or support to develop her career. This has led him to consider her retirement several times.

Despite his youth, Riera has been struggling in professional tennis for several years. As with many Argentine rackets, the lack of sponsors and financial resources makes everything very difficult. So much so that in 2015, at just 13 years old, tired of training so much and not being able to travel much to compete, she hung up her racket. The following year, a call from Daniel Orsanic, then director of development at AAT, motivated her to start again. And even though the struggle didn’t get easier, the results began to appear and this fueled the desire to continue.

“They were a bit difficult times, a bit complicated mentally, but luckily I made the decision to continue playing. And it was the right one. Now I’m in my best moment and I’m very grateful to be able to be here,” said Clarín in October, during the Santiago 2023 Pan American Games in which he won two bronze medals.

One of the most complicated moments of that journey in international tennis occurred in 2021, when in the midst of the pandemic he was left without a sponsor to support a trip to Europe in which he had several tournaments scheduled. The solution came from home: his family organized a lottery with 2,000 peso numbers and offered a weekend for two people in Merlo, province of San Luis.

Second best women’s racket in the country behind Nadia Podoroska (world no. 62) and representative of the Argentine team in the Billie Jean King Cup, she has never given up and her efforts are starting to bear fruit.

Next week will see her involved in qualifying for the Australian Open with the hope of entering the main draw of the first Grand Slam of the year, which will take place in the city of Melbourne from 14 to 28 January.