PARIS (AP) — Loïs Boisson never had played at the French Open, let alone in the biggest arena at Roland-Garros. Nothing fazed the French wild-card entry and now she is in the quarterfinals.
Boisson, ranked just 361st, threw her head back and roared after beating No. 3 seed Jessica Pegula 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 on Court Philippe-Chatrier in the fourth round Monday.
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Kazakhstan's Alexander Bublik celebrates as he won the fourth round match of the French Tennis Open against Britain's Jack Draper at the Roland-Garros stadium in Paris, Monday, June 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)
Serbia's Novak Djokovic plays a shot against Britain's Cameron Norrie during their fourth round match of the French Tennis Open at the Roland-Garros stadium in Paris, Monday, June 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)
Germany's Alexander Zverev celebrates after beating Italy's Flavio Cobolli during their third round match of the French Tennis Open, at the Roland-Garros stadium, in Paris, Saturday, May 31, 2025. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)
Russia's Mirra Andreeva celebrates as she won the fourth round match of the French Tennis Open against Australia's Daria Kasatkina at the Roland-Garros stadium in Paris, Monday, June 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)
Coco Gauff of the U.S. celebrates as she won the fourth round match of the French Tennis Open against Russia's Ekaterina Alexandrova at the Roland-Garros stadium in Paris, Monday, June 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)
France's Lois Boisson celebrates as she won the fourth round match of the French Tennis Open against Jessica Pegula of the U.S. at the Roland-Garros stadium in Paris, Monday, June 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)
She is by far the lowest-ranked woman to beat someone ranked in the top five at the French Open in 40 years. The lowest previously in that span was No. 179 Aniko Kapros, who eliminated No. 5 Justine Henin in the first round in 2002.
Boisson also is the lowest-ranked woman to reach the quarterfinals at Roland-Garros since at least 1985.
Quite a victory, considering Pegula was the U.S. Open runner-up last year. Understandably, Boisson was nervous as she served for the match and saved three break points.
After Pegula missed an easy-looking winner at the net and clutched her head in her hands, Boisson had her first match point, the biggest point of her career.
Pegula returned a strong serve to the back of the court, where Boisson unleashed a forehand winner down the line. She then raised her arms and realized the enormity of her win.
“Thank you to all of you," Boisson told the crowd in her post-match interview. “Playing on this court with such an atmosphere was really incredible.”
Boisson made the notoriously hard-to-please crowd laugh when she added: “I'm really happy on here. I can stay a long time if you like.”
The crowd broke into chants of “Loïs! Loïs!" and she waved back to them.
She is the only French singles player left in either bracket and feels comfortable on clay, having played on it regularly since taking up tennis when she was 8.
Asked what her ambitions were for the rest of the tournament — she plays sixth-seeded Mirra Andreeva on Wednesday in the quarterfinals — Boisson replied, “I hope to win, right?”
That prompted more laughter from the crowd, which included tournament director Amelie Mauresmo, who has been criticized for the lack of women's matches during night sessions.
Another women's quarterfinal was set up between No. 2 Coco Gauff and No. 7 Madison Keys, two Americans who each own one Grand Slam title. Gauff, the 2023 U.S. Open champion, won 6-0, 7-5 against No. 20 Ekaterina Alexandrova, and Keys, the Australian Open title winner in January, defeated yet another American, Hailey Baptiste, 6-3, 7-5.
Over on Court Suzanne-Lenglen, the 18-year-old Andreeva, who reached the semifinals at Roland-Garros last year for her best performance at a major, got past No. 17 Daria Kasatkina 7-5, 6-3. They are pals, and Kasatkina playfully threw her wristband at Andreeva when they came to the net; Andreeva joked she would keep it.
In men's action, Novak Djokovic earned his 100th career French Open victory and set up a quarterfinal against No. 3 Alexander Zverev, last year's runner-up. No. 62 Alexander Bublik surprised No. 5 Jack Draper 5-7, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 and next meets No. 1 Jannik Sinner, a 6-1, 6-3, 6-4 winner over No. 17 Andrey Rublev on Monday night. Sinner has won 18 consecutive Grand Slam matches.
Djokovic overwhelmed Cam Norrie 6-2, 6-3, 6-2, and Zverev was leading 6-4, 3-0 when Tallon Griekspoor quit because of an abdominal strain.
AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis
Kazakhstan's Alexander Bublik celebrates as he won the fourth round match of the French Tennis Open against Britain's Jack Draper at the Roland-Garros stadium in Paris, Monday, June 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)
Serbia's Novak Djokovic plays a shot against Britain's Cameron Norrie during their fourth round match of the French Tennis Open at the Roland-Garros stadium in Paris, Monday, June 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)
Germany's Alexander Zverev celebrates after beating Italy's Flavio Cobolli during their third round match of the French Tennis Open, at the Roland-Garros stadium, in Paris, Saturday, May 31, 2025. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)
Russia's Mirra Andreeva celebrates as she won the fourth round match of the French Tennis Open against Australia's Daria Kasatkina at the Roland-Garros stadium in Paris, Monday, June 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)
Coco Gauff of the U.S. celebrates as she won the fourth round match of the French Tennis Open against Russia's Ekaterina Alexandrova at the Roland-Garros stadium in Paris, Monday, June 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)
France's Lois Boisson celebrates as she won the fourth round match of the French Tennis Open against Jessica Pegula of the U.S. at the Roland-Garros stadium in Paris, Monday, June 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)
A group of Buddhist monks and their rescue dog are striding single file down country roads and highways across the South, captivating Americans nationwide and inspiring droves of locals to greet them along their route.
In their flowing saffron and ocher robes, the men are walking for peace. It's a meditative tradition more common in South Asian countries, and it's resonating now in the U.S., seemingly as a welcome respite from the conflict, trauma and politics dividing the nation.
Their journey began Oct. 26, 2025, at a Vietnamese Buddhist temple in Texas, and is scheduled to end in mid-February in Washington, D.C., where they will ask Congress to recognize Buddha’s day of birth and enlightenment as a federal holiday. Beyond promoting peace, their highest priority is connecting with people along the way.
“My hope is, when this walk ends, the people we met will continue practicing mindfulness and find peace,” said the Venerable Bhikkhu Pannakara, the group’s soft-spoken leader who is making the trek barefoot. He teaches about mindfulness, forgiveness and healing at every stop.
Preferring to sleep each night in tents pitched outdoors, the monks have been surprised to see their message transcend ideologies, drawing huge crowds into churchyards, city halls and town squares across six states. Documenting their journey on social media, they — and their dog, Aloka — have racked up millions of followers online. On Saturday, thousands thronged in Columbia, South Carolina, where the monks chanted on the steps of the State House and received a proclamation from the city's mayor, Daniel Rickenmann.
At their stop Thursday in Saluda, South Carolina, Audrie Pearce joined the crowd lining Main Street. She had driven four hours from her village of Little River, and teared up as Pannakara handed her a flower.
“There’s something traumatic and heart-wrenching happening in our country every day,” said Pearce, who describes herself as spiritual, but not religious. “I looked into their eyes and I saw peace. They’re putting their bodies through such physical torture and yet they radiate peace.”
Hailing from Theravada Buddhist monasteries across the globe, the 19 monks began their 2,300 mile (3,700 kilometer) trek at the Huong Dao Vipassana Bhavana Center in Fort Worth.
Their journey has not been without peril. On Nov. 19, as the monks were walking along U.S. Highway 90 near Dayton, Texas, their escort vehicle was hit by a distracted truck driver, injuring two monks. One of them lost his leg, reducing the group to 18.
This is Pannakara's first trek in the U.S., but he's walked across several South Asian countries, including a 112-day journey across India in 2022 where he first encountered Aloka, an Indian Pariah dog whose name means divine light in Sanskrit.
Then a stray, the dog followed him and other monks from Kolkata in eastern India all the way to the Nepal border. At one point, he fell critically ill and Pannakara scooped him up in his arms and cared for him until he recovered. Now, Aloka inspires him to keep going when he feels like giving up.
“I named him light because I want him to find the light of wisdom,” Pannakara said.
The monk's feet are now heavily bandaged because he's stepped on rocks, nails and glass along the way. His practice of mindfulness keeps him joyful despite the pain from these injuries, he said.
Still, traversing the southeast United States has presented unique challenges, and pounding pavement day after day has been brutal.
“In India, we can do shortcuts through paddy fields and farms, but we can’t do that here because there are a lot of private properties,” Pannakara said. “But what’s made it beautiful is how people have welcomed and hosted us in spite of not knowing who we are and what we believe.”
In Opelika, Alabama, the Rev. Patrick Hitchman-Craig hosted the monks on Christmas night at his United Methodist congregation.
He expected to see a small crowd, but about 1,000 people showed up, creating the feel of a block party. The monks seemed like the Magi, he said, appearing on Christ’s birthday.
“Anyone who is working for peace in the world in a way that is public and sacrificial is standing close to the heart of Jesus, whether or not they share our tradition,” said Hitchman-Craig. “I was blown away by the number of people and the diversity of who showed up.”
After their night on the church lawn, the monks arrived the next afternoon at the Collins Farm in Cusseta, Alabama. Judy Collins Allen, whose father and brother run the farm, said about 200 people came to meet the monks — the biggest gathering she’s ever witnessed there.
“There was a calm, warmth and sense of community among people who had not met each other before and that was so special,” she said.
Long Si Dong, a spokesperson for the Fort Worth temple, said the monks, when they arrive in Washington, plan to seek recognition of Vesak, the day which marks the birth and enlightenment of the Buddha, as a national holiday.
“Doing so would acknowledge Vesak as a day of reflection, compassion and unity for all people regardless of faith,” he said.
But Pannakara emphasized that their main goal is to help people achieve peace in their lives. The trek is also a separate endeavor from a $200 million campaign to build towering monuments on the temple’s 14-acre property to house the Buddha’s teachings engraved in stone, according to Dong.
The monks practice and teach Vipassana meditation, an ancient Indian technique taught by the Buddha himself as core for attaining enlightenment. It focuses on the mind-body connection — observing breath and physical sensations to understand reality, impermanence and suffering. Some of the monks, including Pannakara, walk barefoot to feel the ground directly and be present in the moment.
Pannakara has told the gathered crowds that they don't aim to convert people to Buddhism.
Brooke Schedneck, professor of religion at Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee, said the tradition of a peace walk in Theravada Buddhism began in the 1990s when the Venerable Maha Ghosananda, a Cambodian monk, led marches across war-torn areas riddled with landmines to foster national healing after civil war and genocide in his country.
“These walks really inspire people and inspire faith,” Schedneck said. “The core intention is to have others watch and be inspired, not so much through words, but through how they are willing to make this sacrifice by walking and being visible.”
On Thursday, Becki Gable drove nearly 400 miles (about 640 kilometers) from Cullman, Alabama, to catch up with them in Saluda. Raised Methodist, Gable said she wanted some release from the pain of losing her daughter and parents.
“I just felt in my heart that this would help me have peace,” she said. “Maybe I could move a little bit forward in my life.”
Gable says she has already taken one of Pannakara’s teachings to heart. She’s promised herself that each morning, as soon as she awakes, she’d take a piece of paper and write five words on it, just as the monk prescribed.
“Today is my peaceful day.”
Freelance photojournalist Allison Joyce contributed to this report.
Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," get lunch Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
Aloka rests with Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
A sign is seen greeting the Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
Supporters pray with Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
Supporters watch Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
A Buddhist monk ties a prayer bracelet around the wrist of Josey Lee, 2-months-old, during the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
Bhikkhu Pannakara, a spiritual leader, speaks to supporters during the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
Buddhist monks participate in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
Buddhist monks participate in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
Bhikkhu Pannakara leads other buddhist monks in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
Audrie Pearce greets Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
Bhikkhu Pannakara, a spiritual leader, speaks to supporters during the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," arrive in Saluda, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," are seen with their dog, Aloka, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
