When Christian tennis superstar Coco Gauff won her first Grand Slam singles title at the U.S. Open in 2023, she went viral for publicly offering a prayer of thanksgiving to God. On Saturday, it was her mother, Candi Gauff, who went viral for her prayer moments before her daughter’s second Grand Slam title at the French Open in Paris.
Gauff, the No. 2-ranked women’s tennis player in the world, beat world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka after clawing her way back from a set down at Stade Roland Garros to become the first American champion at the tournament since Serena Williams in 2015. She lost the first set to Sabalenka 7-6 before fighting back to win the second set 6-2 and the final set 6-4.
In a moment captured by TNT Sports during the championship point, Candi Gauff was seen whispering a short prayer for her daughter.
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“Coco Gauff’s mum was praying for her victory during the Championship point at Roland-Garros,” the network wrote with the video clip on Instagram, which as of Monday morning had more than 24,000 likes.
Coco Gauff’s mum was praying for her victory during the Championship point at Roland-Garros ??#RolandGarrospic.twitter.com/zImEXBHYjO
— TNT Sports (@tntsports) June 7, 2025
Many reacting to the post said that they were praying for the 21-year-old tennis player, too.
“She was not the only one praying for her daughter. God heard us mama Gauff,” Melissa Fynn Mark replied.
“I can definitely empathize with her. Been there, done that. For three children from football, basketball, track, and tennis. Junior high, high school and college. It’s not for the faint of heart but it’s worth it. Praise GOD,” added Beverly Graham.
Saturday’s appearance in the French Open women’s final was Gauff’s second in a final at the tournament. In 2022, she suffered a difficult loss to Iga Swiatek when she was just 18 years old, and said she was crushed by it.
Gauff said in her post-match press conference that before the 2022 final, she was very nervous.
“My mentality going into that match, I was crying like before the match and like so nervous and like literally couldn’t breathe and stuff,” she recalled. “I was like, if I can’t handle this, how am I going to handle it like again, and then obviously, the U.S. Open happened.”
Even though she lost the first set to Sabalenka on Saturday, Gauff appeared more composed on the court and focused throughout the rest of the match until she emerged victorious.
During the trophy presentation, Gauff, a member of the historic Saint John Missionary Baptist Church in Boynton Beach, Florida, gave her first thanks to God after the win.
“First, I would like to thank God for always keeping me covered. I was going through a lot of things when I lost in this final three years ago, and I’m just happy to be here. A lot of dark thoughts, and just the fact that I stayed to it just means a lot to be here,” she said.
She followed up with more praise to God in a post on X.
“Wow. This means so much to me truly … French Open champion. I worked so hard for this moment and for it to have happened is insane. Thank you God and thank you everyone,” she wrote. “This means the world … I’m still in shock honestly can’t find the words but all I can say for now is just thank you and never give up on your dreams.”
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