Coco Gauff's Coach Brad Gilbert Says She's 'Focused on the Moment' Before French Open and Olympics (Exclusive)

Coco Gauff is staying focused ahead of the upcoming French Open and Summer Olympics in Paris, her coach Brad Gilbert tells PEOPLE.

In an interview about his work training the cast of the film Challengers, Gilbert, 62, shares how Gauff, 20, is preparing for her upcoming matches in Europe.

"Well, she's preparing right now. She's playing in Stuttgart and then she's got Madrid and Rome, so I'll meet her in a few weeks in Europe," Gilbert says of the reigning US Open champ.

The former Olympian says with the French Open coming up in six weeks, Gauff is "focused on the moment."

He continues, "That's what she's doing right now. So, she's playing Stuttgart and then we got next week Madrid. That's how your focus is. You know that that's where you ultimately want to be playing your best tennis in six weeks, but right now she's focused on Stuttgart."

The French Open begins on May 26 and concludes on June 2. Meanwhile, the Summer Olympics in Paris kick off on July 26 with closing ceremonies taking place on August 11, and in between, Gauff will play at Wimbledon at the beginning of July and additional smaller tournaments.

Gilbert, who worked with Zendaya on Challengers, says training the actress to play a tennis pro in the film "somehow prepared me for Coco."

"In some way, I told Z this last night, somehow she prepared me for Coco. That's my seven degrees of separation," says Gilbert.

Zendaya, 27, attended the Indiana Wells tourname -

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nt in March, where Gauff was eliminated in the semifinals. "Gauff was so bummed because she knew that Zendaya was coming for the final in a couple of days, and then when she lost, she left," Gilbert shares.

"But hopefully that will happen," he says of Gauff and Zendaya meeting in person.

Gilbert joined Gauff's team as a consultant in July 2023 and then took over as her main coach in November. He played professionally from 1982 until 1995 and won the Bronze medal at the 1988 Olympics in South Korea.

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Before the Australian Open in January, Gauff opened up to reporters about the pressure she previously put on herself to win high-profile tournaments.

“I think I put too much pressure on winning a Slam. I think I was feeling like I have to do it,” Gauff said at the time. “When I went on the scene at 15, I felt like I had to win a Slam as a teenager because that’s what everybody thought.”

When reflecting on her first-round loss at Wimbledon last year, Gauff said “The world didn’t end," and added, “The sun still shines. I still have my friends and family.”

“I realized that losing isn’t all that bad, and that I should just focus on the battle and the process and enjoy it," Gauff added. "I found myself being able to play freer and trust myself more.”

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