Dylan Alcott has made history by achieving a Golden Slam following his win against Niels Vink at the US Open.
According to The Guardian, the wheelchair tennis player’s victory in New York City marks him as “the first man in any form of tennis to earn the calendar year [G]olden [S]lam of all four major titles and Paralympic or Olympic gold at the US Open”.
In other words, Alcott is a wheelchair tennis legend who swept up all the major wins for his sport in a single year.
The Melbourne native nabbed this by defeating Niels Vink of the Netherlands 7-5, 6-2 in a 75-minute match.
In a post-match interview, the sporting star had this to say regarding his accomplishment:
“I can’t believe I just won the Golden Slam … I used to hate myself so much, I hated my disability, I didn’t even want to be here anymore.”
“I found tennis and it changed and saved my life … Now I’ve become the only male ever in any form of tennis to win the Golden Slam which is pretty cool.”
.@DylanAlcott chugging a beer out of his #USOpen trophy is an absolute MOOD 😂 pic.twitter.com/YCFJr4GTTj
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) September 12, 2021
Alcott was also a humble winner. He thanked those in attendance along with Australians back home.
“To everybody at home, I love you. Hopefully this puts a smile on your face. Better times are around the horizon … To everybody in New York, I feel honoured and privileged to be out here on this court.”
But it’s the 30-year-old’s post-match celebrations that garnered the world’s attention. While sitting court-side in Arthur Ashe Stadium, watching Novak Djokovic and Daniil Medvedev play their final match, the camera caught Alcott pouring a can of beer into his trophy.
In true Aussie fashion, Alcott showed the world what the people from the Land Down Under are made of when he skulled the beer amidst the roar of the crowd.
“And here’s an Aussie,” the commentator is heard saying between fits of laughter, “I’m going to guess that’s not his first beer of the day.”
Alcott placing the trophy on top of his head like a hat was the pièce de résistance of the clip that has over 7,000 likes on the US Open’s official Twitter page. And what did he have to say after the clip went viral?
“I wouldn’t want to be a beer in New York tonight, because you’re going to get destroyed. That’s for sure.”
Historic achievements 🏆🏆🏆🥇🏆@DiedetheGreat and @DylanAlcott have both completed the Golden Slam in 2021 at the #USOpen pic.twitter.com/EPbUHLroEs
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) September 12, 2021
The US Open was a great time for wheelchair tennis.
Diede de Groot of the Netherlands also won a Golden Slam when she defeated Japan’s Yui Jamiji 6-3, 6-2.
