Rafael Nadal clinched a golden treble to wrap up the Olympic tennis tournament on Sunday, overcoming Chilean Fernando Gonzalez to add the Games men's singles title to his French Open and Wimbledon crowns.
The unstoppable Spaniard won 6-3, 7-6, 6-3 to mark his impending rise to the top of the world rankings with his country's first ever Olympic gold medal in tennis.
- Perfectionist Nadal still not satisfied
Nadal takes over from Roger Federer, who held the No 1 spot in the ATP rankings for a record 237 consecutive weeks from February 2, 2004, after winning his first Australian Open title, until August 17, 2008.
Nadal is the 24th player to hold No. 1 in the history of the rankings (since August 23, 1973). He becomes the seventh active player to rank No. 1 in his career. Here is a list of the 24 players who have ranked No. 1 for the first time in the history of the rankings (since 1973):
The number ones
| Player (Country) | Reached No. 1 | Age | Total Weeks |
| Rafael Nadal (ESP) | Aug. 18, 2008 | 22 years, 2 months | 1 |
| Roger Federer (SUI) | Feb. 2, 2004 | 22 years, 5 months | 237 |
| Andy Roddick (USA) | Nov. 3, 2003 | 21 years, 2 months | 13 |
| Juan Carlos Ferrero (ESP) | Sept. 8, 2003 | 23 years, 6 months | 8 |
| Lleyton Hewitt (AUS) | Nov. 19, 2001 | 20 years, 8 months | 80 |
| Gustavo Kuerten (BRA) | Dec. 4, 2000 | 24 years, 2 months | 43 |
| Marat Safin (RUS) | Nov. 20, 2000 | 20 years, 9 months | 9 |
| Patrick Rafter (AUS) | July 26, 1999 | 26 years, 8 months | 1 |
| Yevgeny Kafelnikov (RUS) | May 3, 1999 | 25 years, 2 months | 6 |
| Carlos Moya (ESP) | Mar. 15, 1999 | 22 years, 6 months | 2 |
| Marcelo Rios (CHI) | Mar. 30, 1998 | 22 years, 3 months | 6 |
| Thomas Muster (AUT) | Feb. 12, 1996 | 28 years, 4 months | 6 |
| Andre Agassi (USA) | Apr. 10, 1995 | 24 years, 11 months | 101 |
| Pete Sampras (USA) | Apr. 12, 1993 | 21 years, 8 months | 286 |
| Jim Courier (USA) | Feb. 10, 1992 | 21 years, 5 months | 58 |
| Boris Becker (GER) | Jan. 28, 1991 | 23 years, 5 months | 12 |
| Stefan Edberg (SWE) | Aug. 13, 1990 | 24 years, 9 months | 72 |
| Mats Wilander (SWE) | Sept. 12, 1988 | 24 years, 1 month | 20 |
| Ivan Lendl (CZE) | Feb. 28, 1983 | 22 years, 11 months | 270 |
| John McEnroe (USA) | Mar. 3, 1980 | 21 years, 15 days | 170 |
| Bjorn Borg (SWE) | Aug. 23, 1977 | 21 years, 2 months | 109 |
| Jimmy Connors (USA) | July 29, 1974 | 21 years, 11 months | 268 |
| John Newcombe (AUS) | June 3, 1974 | 30 years, 11 days | 8 |
| Ilie Nastase (ROM) | Aug. 23, 1973 | 27 years, 1 month | 40 |
Most consecutive weeks at No. 1
| Player | Weeks | Duration |
| Roger Federer | 237 | Feb. 2, 2004-Aug. 17, 2008 |
| Jimmy Connors | 160 | July 29, 1974-Aug. 22, 1977 |
| Ivan Lendl | 157 | Sept. 9, 1985-Sept. 11, 1988 |
| Pete Sampras | 102 | Apr. 15, 1996-Mar. 29, 1998 |
Total weeks at No. 1
| Player | Weeks |
| Pete Sampras | 286 |
| Ivan Lendl | 270 |
| Jimmy Connors | 268 |
| Roger Federer | 237 |
| John McEnroe | 170 |
Left-handers to rank No. 1
| Player | Weeks |
| Jimmy Connors | 268 |
| John McEnroe | 170 |
| Thomas Muster | 6 |
| Marcelo Rios | 6 |
| Rafael Nadal | 1 |
Courtesy: Greg Sharko/ATPptennis.com
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