Gauff in 'peace, end gun violence' message at French Open / Photo: Thomas SAMSON - AFP
Gauff in 'peace, end gun violence' message at French Open
Coco Gauff became the youngest Grand Slam finalist in 18 years at the French Open on Thursday and used the opportunity to plead for peace at home by writing "peace, end gun violence" on a TV camera as she left the court.
American star Gauff, 18, will face world number one Iga Swiatek in the final on Saturday after defeating Martina Trevisan 6-3, 6-1 in her semi-final.
Before penning her plea for gun control in the United States, she insisted she will treat victory or defeat on Saturday with equal level-headedness.
"Yeah it's a Grand Slam final but there are so many things going on in the world, especially in the U.S. -- I think it's not important to stress over a tennis match," she said in her on-court TV interview.
Gauff was talking just hours after a gunman killed at least four people at a hospital building in Tulsa, Oklahoma, -- the latest in a string of mass shootings across the United States in recent weeks.
The killings come as Texas families bury their dead after a school shooting left 19 young children dead just eight days earlier.
N.Clarke--MC-UK
