REVEALED: The Old Harrovian hunk with a tragic past who is helping Emma Raducanu win again

There’s something refreshingly familiar about the Emma Raducanu we’ve seen lately.

A radiant smile; an effortless athleticism in that tanned, leggy walk; a lightness in mood.

That lightness was in abundance when she was photographed in an affectionate embrace with a very strong friend who appeared to have done a really good job of lifting her spirits after losing in the final at the Queen’s Club.

On an early evening date in Battersea Park, the two looked perfectly matched: Dressed in a blue and white striped shirt, he was cool and dapper; He was taut and muscular in his matching light blue gym outfit.

Forget the match he lost just hours ago; She looked happy and relaxed after a triumphant run that took viewers into the dazzling summer of 2021, where the then 18-year-old Emma, ​​fresh from her A-levels, took the tennis world by storm by winning the US Open.

As one well-placed tennis insider told the Daily Mail: ‘Emma is happier than I’ve seen her in years. It’s like he knows where he’s going and understands himself. He regained his self-confidence and joy of life.’

And one of the reasons she’s back in shape is her new boyfriend, John Friend, 32, who runs his PR business with the elite Paratroop reserve regiment 4 Para after a long stint in the army.

There is no doubt that, like Emma, ​​this enterprising young man has struggled with adversity. His adult life has been marked by more tragedy than anyone could bear, with the loss of his mother and two brothers in the last eight years.

The Harrow-trained, super-fit marathon runner lives in Battersea, a short distance from the park he visited with Emma and her American bulldog on June 16. He grew up there with his mother Antoinette, his father Tony, a high-flying boardroom consultant and former managing partner of communications firm Instinctif, and his two older brothers, Will and Tom.

Raducanu photographed at Battersea Park with Mr Friend, whose father is a Queen’s Club member

Antoinette, who worked for British Airways, was diagnosed with incurable breast cancer in August 2016 and died in December 2018. The siblings set up their own charity, Team Antoinette, in her memory and raised nearly £65,000 for Action Against Cancer.

But more tragedy was to follow. Media entrepreneur Will, who left the UK for the US, where he married actress Bevin Prince of One Tree Hill fame, was struck by lightning during a boat trip off the coast of North Carolina in 2022. Will was 33 years old.

Two years later Tom died. He was also 33 years old. He wrote scientific articles on both cancer research and virology.

A source says that although Emma has not experienced the depths of John’s personal pain, the tennis player has had a “tough few years”. After all the glory of winning the US Open in 2021, further victories were disappointingly elusive. The coach who led him to victory was sacked, and eight more coaches came and went as sponsorship deals were made.

There were also injuries, illnesses, a stalker who was given a five-year restraining order after walking 30 kilometers to the tennis star’s home and another who tripped over the star last year.

During one match, the ‘fixed’ fan had to hide behind the referee’s chair in tears when he was spotted and was subsequently escorted from the stands. ‘People think winning the Open is a path to riches,’ the source added. ‘But it opened the floodgates of problems and expectations and led to people coming from nowhere wanting to feed off his fame. He lost the life he had.”

But now, with the development of a new relationship, there seems to have been a reset. A friend says they’ve enjoyed some dates but nothing official yet.

This time last year, rumors were circulating that they had a fairytale love affair with Spanish star Carlos Alcaraz. But it never became more than a friendship between two players about to play in mixed doubles.

Before this, Emma had dated another Harrow graduate, Carlo Agostinelli, son of billionaire financier Robert Agostinelli and Dior’s Paris PR manager Mathilde Favier, for whom Emma had signed on as a global ambassador. However, the relationship ‘worked its way’ until 2024.

In a candid interview that year, Emma, ​​whose parents were hugely influential in her sporting career, revealed how tight control they had over her in her youth.

‘My mother and father were very against it’ [boyfriends] “Because it hinders education for his Romanian father, Ian, and his Chinese mother, Renee,” he said.

‘When I was younger I wasn’t even allowed to hang out with my girlfriends. I was very angry most of the time. But it has made me feel very confident and comfortable in my own company, which is a great strength.’

John, nine years her senior, is listed as a director of JSGF, a public relations firm named after his initials

Born in Westminster in April 1994, the middle child of three brothers, Emma’s new partner grew up in London, where he attended a number of fee-paying schools, including Harrow School.

Emma’s friends are protective of her for good reason.

They are pleased to see him so happy; They say John Friend, whose father is a member of the Queen’s Club, looks very nice, but they are on guard.

As a friend told the Daily Mail: ‘I worry about Emma because she’s a bit vulnerable. I think they met through his father.’ Another tells the Daily Mail: ‘It’s not just about having a boyfriend. More than that. He is happy with the way his life is going. It’s like he’s not struggling and panicking as much as he used to. But John makes her happy; That’s what matters.’

In Romania, Emma’s beloved grandmother Niculina, now 92, agrees.

‘She never told me about any boyfriends,’ she says with a smile. But whatever he likes is fine with me. I never knew he had a crush, even when I was in school. He went to school, then practiced. “No boy mentioned anything.”

What drew huge applause was Emma’s decision to return to Brit Andrew Richardson, the coach who led her to success at the US Open.

Richardson might have felt slighted to be dropped so suddenly; Of course, there are also commentators and friends who say Emma “should never have left him.” However, when Emma sent Richardson a message before the French Open asking if he would rejoin the support team, Richardson accepted.

He has since spent more time at home in his old haunt of Bromley. Last year, she enrolled on an online art history course (she’s already a maths whiz, with an A* at A-level in maths and an A in economics).

The two were seen having fun with each other just hours after Raducanu’s final defeat in Queens.

Emma Raducanu in her singles final match against Donna Vekic at the Queen’s Club Championships

His glossy image is also shifting.

Although he is understood to remain an ambassador for luxury brands Dior and Tiffany & Co, in February it was revealed he had followed in Roger Federer’s footsteps and signed a deal with high street chain Uniqlo, thus ending his long-term association with Nike, which had signed him in his youth. The new deal is reportedly worth £2.6 million per year.

Last year, she became a global ambassador for Wild, a cosmetics company known for its refillable deodorants and emphasis on sustainability. This week he introduced his own eco-friendly vegan deodorant, inspired by his Kent upbringing, for the brand’s ‘The Garden of England’ collection.

Although he is still very wealthy, this all makes for a more comfortable environment. His company’s Harbor 6 accounts showed assets of £13.4 million last year.

Rumors of a minor injury aside, those around him say he’s in a better place than ever.

‘When Emma won the US Open, Dior was thrust into all kinds of PR opportunities with diamonds and all kinds of stuff. Everything seemed fun, but it was tiring. This definitely affected his tennis and this was definitely not that.

‘I don’t think he felt he had any control over what was happening because it was completely new, so his agents took over and did what they thought was best for him. He’s a little more in control now and has a better team around him.

‘There was a period when he had a hard time getting along with his family because they were very strict and didn’t want him to do anything other than training. I think he felt they had to be parents first and tennis fans second, and he struggled with that.’

As another employee added: ‘It’s all about the new Emma. She looks like the old Emma, ​​but not as stressed and anxious. He’s settled in and isn’t running around wildly.’

Emma agreed. He touched on what had gone before in an interview with Grazia magazine this week.

‘I had no spine,’ he said. ‘I would try to justify a particular answer in my head because I thought it was the ‘right’ thing to do or say or the ‘right’ person to work with, even though it didn’t feel right. People you think are really fun or exciting aren’t always good for you.’

Emma now looks like a young woman making her own decisions. We’ll have to wait and see if John Friend is the magic ingredient.