Carlota Ciganda (+1): “Playing for Spain, playing for something bigger than yourself, motivates you and I'm going to do my best.”

Azahara Muñoz (+6): “The worst thing is that I played well, I hit some good shots, but the results didn't come.”

A laborious reaction and a deep incomprehension were the feelings conveyed by Carlota Ciganda and Azahara Muñoz as they passed before the microphones, once both rounds were completed with disparate scores: 73 and 78 strokes.

The golfer from Navarre almost completely fixed, in the second part of the round, a round that was excessively complicated in its first 10 holes, while the golfer from Malaga succumbed to the devastating effect of sending the ball into the water twice.

“I started well on the first three holes, but from the 4th to the 8th I struggled. This is a course that really punishes you if you don't hit the fairways, because then you hardly have a chance for a birdie,” explained Carlota Ciganda, who emphasized that “on the 8th hole I looked really bad, I kept asking myself what was happening, I couldn't see the light at the end of the tunnel. Then I calmed down and gained confidence. That's why I finished 3 under on the last four holes.”.

It was there, in the final part of the match, that Carlota Ciganda's remarkable ability to react came to the fore, revealing the key: “I give it my all, I fight until the end. Playing for Spain, playing for something bigger than yourself, motivates you, and I'm going to do my best. The result isn't all bad; it can be fixed in the three rounds that remain.”.

Just a few minutes later, her partner Azahara Muñoz couldn't stop expressing her sadness over a result, 6 over par, which she didn't quite understand "because the worst thing about it is that I played well, I hit some good shots and I controlled most of the round.".

She was referring, for example, to her opening shot of the Olympic tournament, a long shot that unfortunately ended up in the water. Then I missed many birdie opportunities, which slipped through my fingers. “It’s frustrating not to have played badly, but to have two mistakes penalize me so much,” summarized a dejected Azahara Muñoz, who said she would “face the next round as best I can and focus on the positives from today.”.

Veterans in Olympic competitions…

The women's competition at the Paris Olympic Games features a strong contingent of golfers who have competed in three consecutive Games: first in Brazil, then in Japan, and now in France. This select group of fifteen players represents the enduring quality of their game. Among them are Spaniards Carlota Ciganda and Azahara Muñoz, as well as India's Aditi Asho, Canada's Brooke Henderson and Alena Sharp, New Zealand's Lydia Ko, Denmark's Nanna Koerstz Madsen, Australia's Minjee Lee, China's Xiyu Lin, Mexico's Gaby López, Ireland's Leona Maguire and Stephanie Meadow, the Czech Republic's Klara Davidson Spilkova, Colombia's Mariajo Uribe, and Switzerland's Albane Valenzuela.

…and newcomers to the Olympic Games

Conversely, twenty-four players have made their Olympic debut on this first day, three of them ranked among the top 10 in the World Ranking: number 2, American Lilia Vu; number 5, Chinese Ruoning Yin and number 9, also American Rose Zhang.

With experience in what it's like to be number 1 in the World Ranking

It's not a prerequisite, not by a long shot, for winning the gold medal, but having been ranked number 1 in the Women's World Ranking at some point is a good indication of the quality of play of those who possess it in their sporting record. This is the case for six players who are or have reached that extraordinary level: the current number 1, American Nelly Korda, and, at one time, South Korean Jin Young Ko, New Zealander Lydia Ko, Thai Atthaya Thitikul, American Lilia Vu, and Chinese Ruoning Yin.

With recent knowledge of the Golf National course

While it hosts the men's French Open every year, it's not common for it to host prestigious professional women's tournaments. Therefore, one has to delve into the amateur calendar, specifically the 2022 World Team Championships, to find two players with prior experience on the Parisian course. These are American Rose Zhang, who finished first in the individual standings at that tournament, and German Alexandra Forsterling, who finished sixteenth.

A flood of Solheim Cup players at the Paris Olympics

The presence at the Paris Olympics of players who have taken part in a Solheim Cup on some occasion is very large. To begin with, there are eleven who have represented Europe on some occasion, such as the Spaniards Carlota Ciganda (2012, 2015, 2017, 2019, 2021, 2023) and Azahara Muñoz (2011, 2013, 2015, 2019), the Frenchwoman Celine Boutier, (2019, 2021, 2023), the Swede Linn Grant (2023), the Briton Charley Hull (2013, 2015, 2017, 2019, 2021, 2023), the Danes Emily K. Pedersen (2017, 2021, 2023) and Nanna Koerstz Madsen (2021), the Irishwoman Leona Maguire (2021, 2023), the Swede Maja Stark (2023) and the Dutchwoman Anne Van Dam (2019). On the American team, there are only three golfers who meet the Solheim Cup requirement: Nelly Korda (2019, 2021, 2023), Lilia Vu (2023) and Rose Zhang (2023).

Winners of 'majors' everywhere

The list of players and important tournaments they have won over the last few years is spectacular.

15 LPGA Tour major winners with 22 major titles among the players, including three of the four 2024 LPGA Tour major champions: Nelly Korda (USA, The Chevron Championship), Yuka Saso (Japan, US Women's Open) and Amy Yang (Korea, KPMG Women's PGA Championship)

Three Olympic curiosities

. Moroccan golfer Ines Laklalech was chosen by her country to carry the flag during the spectacular opening ceremony.

. The oldest golfer is the Finnish Ursula Wikstrom, 44 years old.

. Conversely, the youngest player is Shannon Tan from Singapore, who is only 20 years old.