THE CHAMPIONSHIPS

July 9, 2026

Jelena Ostapenko

Marcelo Arevalo

Press Conference

AREVALO-OSTAPENKO/Polmans-Hunter

4-6, 7-5, 6-2

THE MODERATOR: Welcome to the press conference for the Wimbledon mixed doubles champions, Marcelo Arevalo and Jelena Ostapenko.

Guys, must be great to finally get that mixed doubles title. Tell us how you're feeling.

MARCELO AREVALO: Well, I'm extremely happy. Honestly, I think becoming a Grand Slam champion is just a dream for everybody. I think that's what we dream when we are childs, when we start playing tennis.

Doing it here at Wimbledon, I think it means a little bit more. It's just an amazing tournament. It's a lot of history here, like Centre Court. You can feel that aura, that good energy.

When you think back and you start just thinking all the players that went through that court, all those amazing finals, long finals, big matches, history, and just being part of that history, it's something that's amazing for me, I believe also for Jelena.

I'm extremely happy that we got along well in the tournament, on the court, off the court. We are just happy to became Wimbledon champions.

JELENA OSTAPENKO: Yeah, I mean, it's been a great week. Now I am Grand Slam champion in singles, doubles, and mixed doubles. I think it's great to win all the - how you say?

MARCELO AREVALO: Categories?

JELENA OSTAPENKO: Oh, categories probably, yeah.

It was amazing week. I think we play really well with Marcelo. I really enjoy it. We have a lot of fun on the court. Of course, winning Wimbledon is special.

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Can you go into detail of why you play so well together and what made you guys a good partnership?

MARCELO AREVALO: Well, I think Jelena going to have to take some vacation after carrying me the whole two weeks (laughter). I think she's unbelievable player. I'm not going to lie.

After we won the second match, I went to watch some highlights of Jelena of the French Open final when she beat Simona Halep. I was amazed the way she was hitting the ball in that final. I was, like, This is crazy, the way she's hitting the ball so hard.

Then I went to double-check if it's the same way in singles. It was. No, I think, yeah, her game is very aggressive. I try to help her a lot at the net. She does a lot of damage from the baseline. I tried to get that opportunity to move around the court and close the net.

I been serving well the whole tournament, too. I think that's the two things that kind of, like, match in our game: my serve and her power from the baseline, too.

Q. Jelena, you mentioned the record now of having won a Grand Slam title in all three categories. It's an unusual achievement. How proud are you of having done that?

JELENA OSTAPENKO: I think it's really great. I mean, especially winning Wimbledon also, I think it's one of the greatest tournaments. I won here in juniors. Now I won here in mixed doubles.

So the third final was the lucky one finally, because last year was very disappointing to lose in doubles final and one year in mixed doubles final.

It's great. I think, yeah, what Marcelo said, he was serving really great this week. I think our game styles mesh pretty well. I'm playing at the baseline, he's playing really good at the net, then serving very well. I'm very confident on his serve, so yeah.

Q. It's funny what you said about Jelena's shots. I must've written three times 'Jelena, monster'. Halfway through the second set, you really switched it on. How much experience did you draw from being a Grand Slam champion? Marcelo, you refer to El Salvador a lot. Do you feel the weight of wanting to really put El Salvador on the map?

MARCELO AREVALO: Yeah, I think is not a weight for me. It's more I think some motivation. Coming from El Salvador, yeah, it wasn't easy in terms of becoming a professional tennis player 'cause we basically had to find a ways to do it. There were nobody that did it before, so you don't have anybody to look up for. You got to find your ways.

That's what I'm super grateful with my parents, because they sacrificed a lot of things to find the path, to find the way.

My older brother, he was the one who started playing tennis in the family. He's four years older than me. He was a good junior. He was top 10 in juniors. He play at Wimbledon junior and everything. He was top 300 in singles also in the ATP. So he was a big leader in the family. For me, he was the one that kind of shows the way.

I had it a little bit easier 'cause we didn't make the same mistakes like he did. I kind of learned from his mistakes. My parents also did. The whole family did. That's why I always point that out, that everything I have achieved in my life so far, in my tennis career, is a family effort.

One of my main goals and my main motivations in my career is to keep putting El Salvador on the map, to keep motivating the future generation of kids in El Salvador, not only in tennis but in every sport in general.

Q. Jelena, did you feel that strength from your Grand Slam win to get you through today?

JELENA OSTAPENKO: I mean, of course it gives some experience because I was already, like, Grand Slam winner in singles, Grand Slam winner in doubles, a few Grand Slam doubles finals, last year here. Of course.

It also brought little bit pressure because I felt like it was my third final, and I really wanted to win it. I'm very competitive and I really hate to lose in the finals. I'm like, I'm not losing this third final here at Wimbledon. This is the time we have to take the title, yeah.

I think in the end of the second set I felt like we raised our level and played better, and the third set was a good one.

Q. Marcelo, you played twice today. Do you think this is going to be a problem? Because you are playing the second final on Saturday. How do you feel in terms of strength?

MARCELO AREVALO: I feel great. I feel great. Physically I think I have been preparing myself for this tournament. Every time you preparing yourself for any Grand Slam, you got to prepare yourself to play two matches a day.

In my case, I only play doubles and mixed doubles. That's the way that I prepare myself for. I'm ready to play one more match.

I think when you're competing and you're winning, the adrenaline is so high that the same adrenaline keeps you going. This is the way I feel right now. I feel a lot of energy. I'm ready to keep going, to give it another try on Saturday, to keep fighting every point, wish for the best on Saturday.

Q. How will the celebrations be? Will you party together?

MARCELO AREVALO: We're going to go to Dog & Fox now (smiling). I'm kidding. I'm kidding.

No, in my case the job is not done yet for me. I'm going to take it easy today. Of course, I'm going to spend some time with the people, with Jelena's team, then I'm going to go back home and relax and get ready for my practice tomorrow with Pavic. Looking forward to that other final on Saturday.

JELENA OSTAPENKO: I think our friends are going to come to the house where we stay. I think here on-site we'll celebrate a little bit with Marcelo, his team and my team. Yeah, it's time for a bit of vacation. I had 21 days no day off, so I'm pretty tired.

Q. Interesting to know what you said to each other after losing the first set, if there was anything you said when the roof was closed and you were able to have a chat there that turned the match?

MARCELO AREVALO: To be honest, when they came to tell us that they will close the roof, we didn't understand what was going on.

JELENA OSTAPENKO: I was like I thought we have to play three games, then we have a break, then they close the roof. I was so confused.

MARCELO AREVALO: After losing the first set I kind of told Jelena -- well, she told me first, We lost...

JELENA OSTAPENKO: We lost my serve. I was so frustrated, I was thinking about it the whole set. I was so angry, I don't know. But then I was all right in the second set. I was like I think it helped.

MARCELO AREVALO: You also said that, We lost one less point or something.

JELENA OSTAPENKO: Yes, I think we won 34 points and opponents won 35 points, so it was super close. We had some chances on their serves, as well.

MARCELO AREVALO: We just kept believing if we were able to not make one or two extra mistakes, we can turn it around. Yeah, we just take positive the whole way.