lundi 25 mars 2013
Hitting His Stride
Nadal went on to win the next three French Opens. After winning the French Open in 2006— despite both shoulder and foot injuries—he won four other titles. The following year, he won again at Roland Garros, and took home five other titles. Nadal poured it on in 2008, winning the French Open again, in addition to winning Wimbledon—where he beat longtime rival Roger Federer in the longest final in Wimbledon history—gold at the Beijing Olympics, and five other titles. After Wimbledon, Nadal's winning streak stood at a career-best 32 matches.
Since 2008, despite being occasionally hampered by injuries, Nadal has been one of the superstars of the tennis world, winning 15 titles and hitting No. 1 in the world-ranking twice (in August 2008 and again in June 2010). In 2009, he won the Australian Open, and came back to win his second Wimbledon in 2010, as well as his first U.S. Open and fifth Roland Garros tournament.
A Young Professional
At the age of 16, in his first ITF junior event, Nadal made it to the semifinals of the Boys' Singles tournament at Wimbledon. By age 17, he became the youngest man to reach the third round at Wimbledon since Boris Becker.
At the age of 19, in 2005, Nadal won the French Open the first time he played it, and his world ranking went to No. 3. Nadal won 11 singles titles that year, eight of which were on clay, and he was soon dubbed the "King of Clay."
Early Years
Rafael Nadal was born in Majorca, Spain on June 3, 1986. When he was 3 years old, his uncle, Toni Nadal, a former professional tennis player, started working with him, seeing an aptitude for the sport in young Rafael.
At the age of 8, Nadal won an under-12 regional tennis championship, giving Toni Nadal the incentive to step up his training. Toni noticed at the time that Rafael played his forehand shots with two hands, so he encouraged him to play left-handed, thinking it could give Rafael an edge on the court.
When Nadal was just 12 years old, he won the Spanish and European tennis titles in his age group, and at age 15, he turned pro and started playing on the junior circuit.
Who's Rafael Nadal ?
Full name is Rafael Nadal Parera...Nicknamed "Rafa"...Plays left-handed but writes right-handed...Began playing tennis at age four with his uncle Toni, who is his long-time coach...Used to play with two-handed forehand and backhand before his uncle made him change at age nine or 10 to a one-handed forehand...Played his only junior Grand Slam event at Wimbledon in 2002 and reached SF...
Father, Sebastian, is a business partner with two brothers of a restaurant, Sa Punta, and owner of a glass and windows company, Vidres Mallorca...Mother, Ana Maria...Has one younger sister Maria Isabel...Comes from same island (Mallorca) as countryman Carlos Moya...The city of Manacor is second-biggest on island of Mallorca...His other uncle, Miguel Angel Nadal, is a former professional football player with stints at FC Barcelona, Real Mallorca and Spanish national team, which competed in 2002 World Cup...Also played on two other World Cup teams in 1994 and ’98...Earned ATP Newcomer of Year in 2003, ATP Most Improved Player of Year in 2005 and ATP Player of Year in 2008 and 2010...Reached Spanish Championships in July 2003 (l. to Lopez)...Won Prince of Asturias award in 2008, named for Spain's Crown Prince Felipe...In October 2010, opened the Rafael Nadal Tennis School in Anantpur, India, which hosts district, state and national-level tournaments, as well as lay equal emphasis on the children's education and tennis training...Received 2011 Arthur Ashe Humanitarian of the Year for his contributions through the Rafa Nadal Foundation...Coached by his uncle, Toni Nadal, and fitness trainer is Rafael Maymo.
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