The French Open junior championships bring leading 18-and-under players to the clay of Roland-Garros for boys’ and girls’ singles and doubles. The event is part of the ITF World Tennis Tour Juniors and is played during the final week of the senior tournament.
In 2026, the junior championships ran from May 31 to June 6. Luis Guto Miguel won the boys’ singles title and Alisa Oktiabreva won the girls’ singles title.
What Is the French Open Junior Tournament?
The French Open juniors, officially the Roland Garros Junior Championships, are one of the four Junior Grand Slam events. They sit at the highest level of the international junior calendar and award major ranking points, but they are separate from the men’s and women’s professional draws.
Players compete on outdoor clay at Roland-Garros. Matches can be scheduled on outside courts and, in the later stages, on Court Simonne-Mathieu or another show court chosen by the tournament.
The junior event includes:
- Boys’ singles.
- Girls’ singles.
- Boys’ doubles.
- Girls’ doubles.
Junior wheelchair events are also part of the wider Roland-Garros program, but they have separate draws, classifications and entry procedures.
French Open Junior Draw Format
Recent boys’ and girls’ singles main draws have contained 64 players. A player must win six matches to become singles champion.
The basic knockout path is:
| Round | Players remaining |
|---|---|
| First round | 64 |
| Second round | 32 |
| Third round | 16 |
| Quarterfinals | 8 |
| Semifinals | 4 |
| Final | 2 |
There is no round-robin stage. A loss eliminates the player from singles, although the same player may still be active in doubles.
The single-elimination tournament guide explains why a 64-player draw requires six wins from start to finish.
Junior Qualifying
Roland-Garros can stage junior qualifying away from the main stadium before the main junior draw begins. In 2025, 32 boys and 32 girls played two qualifying rounds for places in the main draw.
That is a useful recent example, not a permanent guarantee. Draw sizes, sites and the number of qualifying places should be checked in the current tournament information.
Junior Doubles
Boys’ and girls’ doubles use separate team draws. Entry can depend on combined junior rankings, acceptances and wild cards, and partners must meet the tournament’s sign-in requirements.
Doubles is not merely an extra chance at a trophy. It develops return positioning, communication and net play that can help a player later on the professional tour. The rules of tennis doubles cover the wider court, serving order and legal return positions.
Who Is Eligible to Play French Open Juniors?
The ITF World Tennis Tour Juniors is for players aged 18 and under, but eligibility is controlled by a birth-year cutoff and the current ITF regulations. A player cannot enter simply because they are 18 on the day of the tournament.
Junior participation also depends on age-related competition limits, entry deadlines and the player’s status under ITF rules. Younger players can face restrictions on the number and level of events they play.
Prospective entrants and coaches should use the current ITF junior regulations for the exact birth years and limits. An old article can explain the format but cannot replace the official entry rule for a specific season.
How Players Enter the Roland-Garros Junior Draw
Most junior main-draw places are awarded through the ITF junior acceptance system. The field can include direct acceptances, qualifiers and wild cards.
Direct Acceptance
The ITF junior ranking is the main route into the draw. Entry lists are created after the deadline using the ranking and eligibility rules specified for the event.
The cutoff changes each year. A ranking that was high enough in one edition may leave a player outside the field in another, depending on who enters.
The guide to how the junior tennis ranking system works explains how singles and doubles results contribute to a combined ranking.
Wild Cards
The tournament awards wild cards to selected players who do not enter directly through the normal cutoff. French prospects receive many of these opportunities, while international development agreements and Roland-Garros Junior Series events can create other pathways.
In recent years, Junior Series events in South America and Asia have offered winners wild cards into the Paris junior draw. The specific series, eligibility rules and reward can change, so it should not be treated as a universal route for every region.
Qualifying
Players accepted into junior qualifying must win the required matches to reach the main draw. A qualifying wild card gives access only to that qualifying competition, not directly to the 64-player field.
Junior qualifying and senior qualifying are separate events. A player’s result in one has no bearing on entry into the other.
How Are Junior Matches Scored?
Junior singles matches are normally best of three sets. The first player to win two sets advances.
Tie-break and doubles formats are governed by the current Junior Grand Slam regulations and tournament information. Fans should check the posted draw and match format because junior doubles can use shortened deciding formats that differ from senior singles.
The basic progression from points to games and sets is the same as in adult tennis. The tennis scoring system explained is a useful starting point for first-time spectators.
Recent French Open Junior Singles Champions
| Year | Boys’ champion | Girls’ champion |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Luis Guto Miguel | Alisa Oktiabreva |
| 2025 | Niels McDonald | Lilli Tagger |
| 2024 | Kaylan Bigun | Tereza Valentová |
| 2023 | Dino Prižmić | Alina Korneeva |
| 2022 | Gabriel Debru | Lucie Havlíčková |
Miguel became the first Brazilian to win a Roland-Garros junior singles title in 2026. Oktiabreva defeated Sun Xinran in the girls’ final, while Miguel beat Michael Antonius in the boys’ final.
In 2025, McDonald won the first all-German boys’ final at the tournament. Tagger became the first Austrian girl to win a Junior Grand Slam singles title.
Famous Players Who Won French Open Junior Titles
A junior title is not a prediction of a senior championship, but the list of past winners contains many elite professionals.
Notable junior singles champions include:
- Ivan Lendl.
- Mats Wilander.
- Stan Wawrinka.
- Justine Henin.
- Simona Halep.
- Coco Gauff.
- Elina Svitolina.
- Holger Rune.
- Tommy Paul.
Several later won the senior singles title at Roland-Garros, including Lendl, Wilander, Wawrinka, Henin and Halep. Gauff won the girls’ title in 2018 at age 14 and later became the women’s singles champion in 2025.
That progression is impressive but not automatic. Junior success measures performance against an age-group field, while professional tennis adds stronger opponents, longer seasons, greater physical demands and the financial challenge of traveling internationally. The guide to becoming a professional tennis player explains the broader pathway beyond one junior result.
Does a Junior Champion Receive a Senior Main-Draw Place?
Winning the French Open junior title does not automatically award a place in the senior Roland-Garros main draw. The junior and professional entry systems are separate.
A champion may later receive a wild card from a tournament, use an applicable development program, or earn entry through a professional ranking. Those opportunities depend on the player’s age, results and the decisions of the relevant organizers.
The distinction matters because even the best junior may not yet have the professional ranking needed for a Grand Slam main draw.
Ranking Points and Prize Money
Junior Grand Slams award ITF junior ranking points. Strong results can improve acceptance into later junior tournaments and help a player qualify for year-end junior events or development opportunities.
The junior championships should not be confused with the senior prize-money structure. The published senior round-by-round prize table does not apply to the junior draws, whose rewards center on the title and ITF junior ranking points.
Players and families should read current regulations before accepting expenses, grants or benefits. Junior eligibility rules are more specific than a general summary can cover.
Watching the French Open Juniors
The junior tournament begins during the second week of Roland-Garros, when fewer senior singles matches remain. An outside-court ticket can provide access to junior matches, subject to the day’s schedule and court capacity.
Junior tennis is often easier to watch from close range than a marquee senior match. It also gives spectators an early view of playing styles and competitors who may appear on the ATP or WTA tours later.
Check the daily order of play rather than assuming every junior round will use the same court. Weather and unfinished matches can change the schedule.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the age limit for French Open juniors?
The event is part of the ITF 18-and-under tour, but exact eligibility follows the birth-year cutoff and current ITF regulations.
How many players are in the junior singles draw?
Recent boys’ and girls’ singles main draws have contained 64 players, requiring six wins to take the title.
Is there qualifying for French Open juniors?
Yes. Recent editions have held separate junior qualifying. In 2025, 32 boys and 32 girls played two rounds for main-draw places.
Do junior champions enter the senior French Open automatically?
No. They still need a professional ranking, qualifying place, main-draw wild card or another valid route under senior entry rules.
Who won the 2026 French Open junior titles?
Luis Guto Miguel won the boys’ singles title and Alisa Oktiabreva won the girls’ singles title.