![L'ancien joueur de tennis français Gaël Monfils salue le public lors d'une cérémonie marquant sa retraite, organisée lors de la deuxième journée du tournoi de tennis ATP Masters 1000 de Paris, à la Plenitude Arena de Nanterre, en banlieue parisienne, le 3 novembre 2026. [Dimitar DILKOFF / AFP]](/cdn-cgi/image/onerror=redirect,width=640,height=640,format=webp/https://storage.googleapis.com/uploads.mongoosehq.com/url/media/196068961/44bb8389e356d8dd37077159201de9cddfc718758523ea5fb0eec0dd89a7f672)
Overview
- Monfils appeared at the Paris Masters for a short, emotional send‑off that included a lap of honour, a career highlights video and a giant “Merci Gaël” tifo.
- Tournament organizers and the French Tennis Federation invited former players and friends to the ceremony, with Jo‑Wilfried Tsonga, Richard Gasquet, Gilles Simon, Benoît Paire and singer Matt Pokora among those who paid tribute.
- He had quietly made his decision public in early October by registering on a confidential anti‑doping list, a procedural step that confirmed his departure from the tour.
- Monfils said personal turmoil linked to Elina Svitolina’s announcement of their separation left him in a “période compliquée” and led him to abandon planned appearances in Lyon and a staged farewell in Paris.
- The ceremony closed a career that began in 2004 and featured two Paris finals in 2009 and 2010, giving fans and French tennis officials a public moment of closure and recognition for his long popularity.