Coco Gauff is one of the most talented players on the WTA Tour, and growing up, she had two role models to look up to - Venus Williams and Serena Williams.
The legendary Williams sisters have inspired millions of kids across the United States, and while we can see many of them compete professionally, not many had success like Coco Gauff did.
The young American has recently won her first Grand Slam title at the 2023 US Open, and she's also the highest-ranked American in tennis. One of the tournaments she won was also the 2023 Cincinnati Masters, which was then her biggest career title.
At the event, Gauff recorded a video, which was now publish by the Western & Southern Open, in which the teenager talks about how she started playing tennis, and how her dad, Corey Gauff, led her to it.
"I wouldn't say it was like something that I asked to do, he just like brought it and like, then I just gravitated towards it. I would hit on the wall and inside the house a lot. We had a basement and then I would hit on the garage door and I just loved playing and just liked it a lot."
Every athlete needs a role model, and almost everyone has some. For Gauff, the choice was really simple. When she was growing up, Venus and Serena Williams dominated the sport, and the youngster got a chance to see what's possible.
"And then seeing Serena and Venus being so electric on TV made me want to do something like that, too. And then it just became a part of me pretty much after, I would say, the age of eight is when I really fell in love with it. I started at six. But I think eight is when I knew I wanted to take it seriously. I was still doing other sports, but I knew tennis was the one I wanted to continue with."
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