“I think I am an amateur tennis player,” said Leo, a Chicago-born Augustine missionary, after an interview with Augustine Order in 2023.
“I have hardly had a chance to practice since leaving Peru, so I look forward to returning to the court,” Leo added. “It’s not that this new job leaves me with a lot of free time.”
Although Rome’s Mediterranean climate makes tennis outdoors year-round and has courts in the capital, Leo may have less time to play since he is the Pope.
But Greek professional Stefanos Tsitsipas is ranked third, and he said he would be happy to play some ball with Leo if he finds time. “Why not?” Tsitsipas said when asked by the Associated Press after winning the second round on Friday. “I think people like this might teach human things. … I’m lucky that I’m here when I announced it.” 2023 U.S. Open champion Coco Gauff said she almost joined the crowd running to St. Peter’s Square when she received an alert on her phone that the new pope was elected as a new pope.
“But the next day I realized that this game might not be as smart as a mile sprint.”
“Hopefully he’s watching some women’s tennis,” Goff said. “I don’t know if the Pope is in a sporting event…but maybe he will play in the future.”
The first round of tennis was played at Foro Italico when Leo was elected and introduced in the Vatican on Thursday.
Images of Leo are shown on the Campo Central scoreboard as Jacob Fearnley defeated Fabio Fognini. On the exterior wall of the stadium, the giant screen was adjusted to a news channel, covering the announcement of the new pope.
The Leo brothers say the new pope is also a fan of the Chicago White Sox baseball team.
