Rafael Nadal won the 2008 Olympic men’s singles tennis gold medal in Beijing.
The tournament was held from August 10 to 17 at the Olympic Green Tennis Centre in Beijing, China. Nadal defeated Chile’s Fernando González in the final, 6–3, 7–6(7–2), 6–3. It was Nadal’s Olympic debut and Spain’s first Olympic tennis gold medal.
The victory arrived during one of Nadal’s defining seasons. He had already won the French Open and Wimbledon in 2008, and his Olympic triumph became the third part of his eventual career Golden Slam. The result also helped propel him to world No. 1 on August 18, ending Roger Federer’s record run of 237 consecutive weeks atop the rankings.
A common mix-up is with London, where tennis was played at the 2012 Olympics, or Athens, host of the 2004 Games. Nadal did not win singles gold at either event.