Coco Gauff pens heartfelt message as her grandmother Yvonne Odom accepts major honor on her behalf; mom Candi also shares loving reaction

August 21, 2025

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Coco Gauff recently extended gratitude after her maternal grandmother, Yvonne Odom, accepted a major honor on behalf of the American player. This also caught the attention of her mother, Candi Gauff, who shared a sweet reaction to the same.

Gauff was last seen competing at the Cincinnati Open, where she delivered some impressive performances and qualified for the quarterfinal round. Here, she locked horns with Jasmine Paolini, who produced a dominant display of her skills, registering a 2-6, 6-4, 6-3 win over the American. Following this campaign, the latter has been gearing up for the upcoming US Open.

Amid the preparations, the 21-year-old recently received a proclamation from the City of Delray Beach Commission for her tennis accomplishments and her contributions to her community. This award was accepted by Gauff’s maternal grandmother, Odom, on her behalf.

Sharing a picture of the latter holding the award in her hand on her Instagram story, the tennis player penned a note that read:

"Thank you so much to my city for recognizing me🙏🏾🙏🏾"

Along with Gauff, her mother, Candi, also dropped a reaction to this achievement by sharing the news on her Instagram story and adding a few red heart emojis in the caption.

"❤️❤️❤️"

When Coco Gauff's grandmother Yvonne Odom shared a heartwarming message for the player

In October 2024, Coco Gauff's maternal grandmother, Yvonne Odom, shared a heartwarming message, opening up about her love for the American tennis player. A video was shared by Fast Living Athletes on their Instagram channel, which carried glimpses of the American celebrating her 2023 US Open win.

The background voice in the video was of her grandmother narrating a sweet message for the now 21-year-old, expressing how proud she was of her.

"Coco, to me, was destined for greatness because as a little girl, she displayed that in many ways. I love you, you know I always say I love you, but do your best," Coco Gauff's grandmother said.

She added:

"You know I’ve always said that because if you do your best, win or lose, I might not care if you win another match, you already made me proud. So always, do your best. Like your grandaddy said, 'Never say die'."

Coco Gauff also once credited Odom for all her life lessons and stated that she had been inspired by the latter to always voice her opinion on important social issues. She also revealed that her grandmother is a stage 4 lung cancer survivor.

About the author

An English Honors graduate, Nancy is a journalist at Sportskeeda covering US Olympic sports. She has a total experience of 4 years, having previously worked as a Marketing Executive for BYJU’S before finding her footing at SK.

To deliver the best content, Nancy keeps herself updated by reading as much as possible about the athletes and the sport, and believes that researching and trusting credible sources is the key to reporting ethical and accurate information.

Track and Field events particularly interest Nancy, and she is a fan of Allyson Felix. While she cherished each of her victories, her favorite Olympic moment happens to be the retired athlete’s 10th medal at the Games.

Nancy believes that covering the personal lives and training sessions of the Olympic athletes, and showcasing old podcasts or interviews would help bridge the coverage gap of the sport in its off season.

When away from her keyboard, Nancy spends most of her free time reading books. She also writes poems and plans on publishing a book.

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