Gael Monfils aims to play until 40 like sporting greats Cristiano Ronaldo & LeBron James

[p]The Frenchman, who turns 40 in September, bade ‌a fond farewell to Roland Garros after going down [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/tennis/gaston-h-hGqnSub7/monfils-g-fm7G8o0m/?mid=6ie1sxmC"]6-2 6-3 ‌3-6 2-6 6-0[/a] to compatriot [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/gaston-hugo/hGqnSub7/"]Hugo Gaston[/a] in the ‌first round on Monday, walking off to a standing ovation that celebrated a career that spanned two decades.[/p][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/monfils-gael/fm7G8o0m/"]Monfils[/a] will retire at the ‌end of the season as he seeks to ⁠manage his body into ‌his 40s.[/p][p][b]"Why do I want to get to the States? Because ​I want to play until 40. My wish is to be an athlete that plays until 40 ​years old,"[/b] Monfils said.[/p][p]"Like Stan ([a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/wawrinka-stan/Uo9lu6le/"]Wawrinka[/a]), LeBron, Cristiano, (Patrice) Evra, like all of the athletes who have managed to continue their sport ⁠until the age ​of 40.[/p][p][b]"That's what I want to do. You know that whatever happens this summer, I'm locked in to train."[/b][/p][embed guid="5669f55b-fde4-4a33-992e-1a358bb7a1cb" url="https://x.com/Eurosport_ES/status/2059045668795126041" social-type="twitter" /][p]The former world number six, who has enjoyed some of his best results ‌on clay, acknowledged that the surface has become more challenging in recent years.[/p][p]While he hopes to secure a wildcard for the U.S. Open, he also plans to play Wimbledon and Montreal.[/p][p][b]"Hopefully Wimbledon. Then need to decide if we go to Washington or not,"[/b] he said.[/p][p]"I think we will ask Montreal, hopefully. I want to say[/p][p]goodbye to Montreal. Obviously I will ask the French Federation to have the U.S. ‌Open wildcard. Hopefully I will have this one.[/p][p][b]"Asia is a ​bit blurry, to be honest. Then the end of ‌the year, I can tell you I will play Lyon, the new tournament. Nicolas (his agent) wants me to play Vienna, and then hopefully, Paris."[/b][/p][p]The 13-time ATP title winner reached the French Open semi-finals in 2008 and was ⁠a key part of ⁠France's Davis Cup runs ‌in 2010 and 2014.[/p]