France's World No 18 gets emotional while reacting to terror attacks back home in Paris after shocking World No 5 Agnieszka Radwanska in Hopman Cup
French tennis ace Alize Cornet. Pic/AFP.
Perth: French tennis star Alize Cornet honoured her 12 countrymen killed in the attack on satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo in Paris after her win over Poland's Agnieszka Radwanska at the Hopman Cup yesterday.
French tennis ace Alize Cornet. Pic/AFP.
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World No 18 Cornet said she had notched up one of the best wins of her career over No 5 Radwanska, winning 6-4, 2-6, 7-5 in two hours and 41 minutes here.
A woman holds a sign reading 'Yo soy Charlie'(I am Charlie in Spanish) in Santo Domingo City of the Dominican Republic to support victims of the recent terrorist attack on French magazine Charlie Hebdo in Paris. Pic/AFP.
Strong message
“For sure, I've played the best on court… the level was very high from the beginning to the end,” said Cornet, who came onto the court with ‘Je Suis Charlie’ (I am Charlie written in French) on a handwritten note taped to her bag, having tweeted the same message just hours after the attack on Wednesday.
The slogan has become a tribute to the 12 killed in an Islamist attack on the Paris magazine, including some of the country's most well-known cartoonists. The tragedy has sparked a global outpouring of solidarity.
Emotional anthem
Cornet, who looked emotional as she sang along to the French national anthem before the match, looked at the message at each change of ends and pointed to it at the conclusion of the match.
Speaking after the win, the 24-year-old said she was deeply affected by the tragedy at home which she heard of while the French were playing Australia on Wednesday. “I was horrified, I was so shocked and very emotional about it,” she said, describing the victims as “people you know so well, you have the feeling they are part of your family.”
“Each time I was going to the chair, I was seeing the message and it was coming to my mind. Twelve people dead and all this violence... it touches the whole world and the whole of humanity, and we really have to be strong. I will need some time to be over it, because right now it touches me and I know it is the same for all French people,” said Cornet claiming she was determined to honour her fallen countrymen with a win.
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