- Woodforde was thrilled to see the Australians win gold
- Peers and Ebden claimed victory in the tiebreak in doubles tennis
- The event’s only gold medal since The Woodies in 1996
Mark Woodforde has revealed that watching John Peers and Matt Ebden become the new Olympic golden boys of Australian tennis left him in tears at Roland Garros.
Woodforde, one half of the “Woodies” team with Todd Woodbridge who were Australia’s only Olympic tennis winners 28 years ago in Atlanta, told AAP he felt like he had struck gold again when he watched the veteran doubles pair triumph on Saturday.
And although he had to remain strictly neutral as vice-president of the International Tennis Federation, Woodforde couldn’t help but feel secretly thrilled that, when asked to be part of the medal ceremony party, it was another Australian duo he ended up handing victory gifts to on the podium.
Peers and Ebden, the 36-year-old friends who live a street apart in Perth, explained after their thrilling gold medal match win over Americans Rajeev Ram and Austin Krajicek how honoured they were to join “the Woodies”.
They considered the doubles greats to have been a constant source of help and inspiration. “They paved the way and set the bar so high that it’s incredible that I’m in the same category. For me, it’s an absolute honour to be mentioned in the same category,” said Peers.
But Woodforde, now 58, felt the honour was all his. “I feel like I’m on top of the world, I feel like I’ve won seeing that,” the 17-time Grand Slam doubles winner explained.
‘Todd and I completely understand the journey that Matt and John have had to go through this week. It’s not easy, it’s about survival. But to win such a close and tense game, and then to stand on the dais and see the flag go up, is the icing on the cake.
“I saw them downstairs just before we went in to do the ceremony. It actually brought tears to my eyes.
Australia claimed its first men’s doubles gold since 1996 with Matt Ebden and John Peers winning a superb match.
Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde pictured winning gold in Atlanta
‘Rajiv and Austin were there, so I’m trying to be respectful to them, because it’s painful for the guys who come in second, but it was super emotional for me.
‘I’m so glad Todd and I now have other gold medalists so we can celebrate Olympic fever.
“At the ceremony, when I walked over to Matt and John, I had a lump in my throat. All I could say was, ‘This is absolutely memorable.'”
Meanwhile, as they prepared for a “wild” night of celebration, Ebden and Peers were asked if they could now play together more often.
“You just need to ask,” laughed Peers, who has had a succession of different playing partners over the years, while Ebden recently reached world number one alongside his regular partner, the seemingly ageless 44-year-old Indian Rohan Bopanna.
“It’s definitely possible,” Ebden said, revealing they had previously considered becoming a team.
‘Logistically it hasn’t worked out yet, but if they ever need us for the Davis Cup or there’s some tournament where each of us is looking for a partner, we know we’ll play very well together.’