Rafa Nadal is widely regarded as the finest clay court player in history. He has won 20 Grand Slam singles titles. By winning the 2020 French Open, Nadal became the only male player to win the same Grand Slam tournament 13 times and the first to win at least one Grand Slam tournament for ten consecutive years. He broke the previous record of eight consecutive years shared by Björn Borg, Pete Sampras, and Roger Federer.
Beyond titles, Rafa is also known for his courage and fair play. Masterfully coached by his uncle Toni, he has always been very modest when asked about the importance of his achievements. “All I do is get the ball back over the net,” he once said after winning an important title.
It is wonderful when someone who has dedicated his life to his dream is rewarded with titles and recognition. But becoming a successful tennis player is not easy. It takes a great deal of effort and sacrifice, especially when life seems to place barriers in the way, turning a person’s life into a movie script.
Sadly, reality often surpasses fiction, which describes what happened to Victoria Duval. Victoria was born in Miami in November 1995 and spent part of her childhood in Haiti, the birthplace of her father.
At the age of 7, while living in Port-au-Prince, Duval was robbed at gunpoint and held hostage at her aunt’s house.
Years later, her father Jean-Maurice was buried alive but survived, in the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, while Victoria was playing tennis in the U.S.
In 2010, Victoria turned pro, and in 2013, she reached the 2nd round in the US Open after defeating Samantha Stosur, ranked in the top 15 and US Open champion two years earlier.
In 2014, while playing at Wimbledon, Duval was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Despite this, she went on to win three more matches before eventually losing.
When Victoria, who had made her debut in the “Top 100”, returned to the United States, tests confirmed the result of the British biopsy. Physicians said cancer had been caught at an early, isolated stage and that the prognosis was for a full recovery within a few months.
Last September, after completing chemotherapy treatment, Victoria announced that she was free of cancer.
Currently, Victoria is training hard to recover from an injury at Landisville ITF when she was already in the quarterfinals.
Let’s hope she can fulfil her dreams and her efforts are rewarded with a healthy, happy future. She is definitely an inspiration and role model to us all.
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