New York, Jul 24 (IANS): Women tennis player Coco Gauff will carry the U.S. flag at the Paris Olympic Opening Ceremony on Friday, becoming the youngest American to get this honour. Gauff, 20, was selected by her fellow U.S. Olympic team members, making her the first tennis player to serve as a U.S. flag-bearer at either an opening or closing ceremony.

Joining her will be NBA star LeBron James, named the male flag-bearer on Monday.

Gauff, born in March 2004, will surpass the record previously held by Cindy Nelson, an Alpine skier who served as flag-bearer for the U.S. at the Opening Ceremony of the 1976 Winter Games.

Ranked a career-high No. 2 in the world in singles, Gauff has won her first Grand Slam titles in both singles and doubles over the past year. At the U.S. Open last September, she became the youngest American to win a Grand Slam singles title since Serena Williams claimed her first title at 17 in 1999.

Furthermore, at the French Open this past June, Gauff teamed with Czech Katerina Siniakova to capture the women's doubles title, becoming the youngest woman to win a Grand Slam in both singles and doubles in 19 years.

She made the Tokyo Olympic team at age 17 but was forced to withdraw five days before the opening ceremony after testing positive for Covid-19.