Coco Gouf They have already achieved what most athletes dream of. And she’s just starting out. At just 21 years old, Tennis Phenom has risen to the ranks and has become one of the brightest stars of the sport. “Sometimes my father would say, ‘You can afford to treat yourself.’ But I’m from a middle class family, so even the necessary things like flights and hotel rooms still seem to me a lot,” she said. Guardian In an interview ahead of the 2023 Wimbledon Tournament.
Since making headlines as a teenage sense at Wimbledon, Gauff continues to deliver on the court, winning her first grand slam at the 2023 US Open and earning praise from tennis legends Chris Evert“She’s going to win a Grand Slam… It’ll happen for her in the end.”
That prediction has already been realized. And now Coco shows no signs of slowing down. Here’s what you need to know about the champions who will rebuild the future of tennis below:
Coco Gauff is a tennis player
Born on March 13, 2004, Kori “Coco” Graf grew up in Atlanta. After seeing her, she became interested in tennis at the age of four. Serena Williams It won the Australian Open in 2009. She began playing at the age of six, and at the age of seven her family moved to Delray Beach, Florida, where she had better training opportunities. Coco won the “Little Mo” 8 Under Nationals, like when she wanted to be a tennis player when she grew up. “I love tennis,” she said in 2020. Guardian. “I didn’t want to practice at all when I was younger, so at first I just wanted to play with friends.
She follows in the footsteps of Serena Williams
In 2017, Coco listed their favorite players in the following order: “Serena, Venus (Williams),, Madison Keysand Sloan StephensAccording to ESPN, Coco met Serena, who she first met at the Little Mo tournament in New York, and met again in 2015 while filming the Delta commercial at West Palm Beach. I had to hit her with some serves. I also met her in Nice, France (and Patrick Mouratoglou training facility). 4
At age 10, Coco began training at Mouratoglue Academy in France, run by Serena’s longtime coach. The training seemed to pay off. In 2014, she won the USTA Clay Court National 12 Under title. At the time, she was 10 years and 3 months old and the youngest champion in history.
Coco had a breakout in 2019
Coco became a pro in 2018 and made his WTA debut at the Miami Open on each ESPN. She won her first match before losing in the second round. Her big breakout came the following year. After losing in straight sets in the second round of qualifying at French Open, Coco secured a spot at Wimbledon after his application for wildcard entry was approved. She surged in qualifying, beating Venus Williams before eventually losing to the final champion in the fourth round. Simona Harep. “I’m not here without you,” Coco told Venus following the Wimbledon victory. Before Coco was born in 2004, Venus had already had four Grand Slam victory under her belt.
Made for a big stage@cocogauff Since 1991, he has won the first round of women’s singles and has become the youngest player to beat Venus Williams 6-4, 6-4#wimbledon pic.twitter.com/hfgcqgdztq
– Wimbledon (@wimbledon) July 1, 2019
As a result, Coco ranked 141st in the world. She continued her success at the 2019 US Open, reaching the third round, losing to the world’s No. 1 and defending champions. Naomi Osaka.
…and won her first WTA single title at age 15.
It wasn’t long before Coco claimed her first WTA victory after a splash at Wimbledon and the US. She won the 2019 Lintz Open in Austria and was defeated Deer Remaining In the finale. She was 15 years old at the time. She won her second WTA tournament in May 2021, claiming that Emilia Romagna opened after her loss Wang Qiang In two straight sets.
In 2022, she made it to the final of the French Open. She fell Iga Christmas In two straight sets.
She uses the platform to spread the message
Coco used her fame and celebrity status to speak out about social justice, particularly the countless numbers of black men and women killed by American police. “Wimbledon gave me the opportunity to raise money and raise awareness about other things. Guardian. “In every match I win, it seems like I’ll get more and more people following me, so that’s good. It means more perceptions of subjects I care about. I’ve always didn’t want to be a tennis player.”
“I think the world has to get used to it because young people have been a major move these days and we’re used to the older people who have taught us what we should do,” she added. “My generation decided it was time to talk about things myself. I’ve been following the (climate) movement a lot, and at least I’m learning how to change my lifestyle and how my family lives for the better.”
