Canada's Galarneau comes up short in French Open qualification bid

Canada's Alexis Galarneau reacts during his match against France's Arthur Rinderknech during first round tennis action at the National Bank Open in Toronto on Monday, July 28, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young

PARIS — Canada’s Alexis Galarneau fell just short of clinching his first Grand Slam main draw berth after a 5-7, 6-2, 7-5 loss to Italy’s Federico Cina in the third round of qualifying Thursday.

The 19-year-old Cina converted five break points to Galarneau’s three and advanced to his first Grand Slam main draw.

The 27-year-old Galarneau, from Laval, Que., was eliminated in the first round of qualifying in the previous two years at Roland Garros. He was only Canadian to advance to the third round of qualifying this year.

The five Canadians who had already qualified for the clay court Grand Slam were given their first-round assignments in Thursday’s draw.

Montreal’s Felix Auger-Aliassime, the men’s fourth seed, will play Germany’s Daniel Altmaier on Monday. Montreal’s Gabriel Diallo was scheduled to play Australia’s James Duckworth on Sunday. Denis Shapovalov of Richmond Hill, Ont., will face a qualifier or lucky loser.

In the women’s draw, ninth seed Victoria Mboko of Burlington, Ont., will face Czechia’s Nikola Bartunkova on Sunday, and 24th seed Leylah Fernandez of Laval, Que., takes on Alycia Parks of the United States on Monday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 21, 2026.