If you are a die-hard sports fan, and especially tennis, you probably have as a reference Rafael Nadal Parera; considered one of the best tennis players in the world according to the Association of Professional Tennis Players.
The Mallorcan played tennis, football and basketball from a very young age, but it was not until he was 14 that he fully focused on racket sport. His achievements include thirteen victories in the Roland Garros, twenty in the Grand Slam, two in the Championship of Wimbledon, one in the Australian Open and four at the US Open.
Not only is he the most successful Spanish tennis player in history, but he is also the second tennis player in the world with the most titles won. In short, Rafa Nadal has earned all the victories he enjoys today. If the professional and personal career of the tennis player is interesting to you, don't miss today's post: we tell you 10 interesting facts about Rafa Nadal's life.
1. Why the tennis player does he play with his left foot?
Toni Nadal, who is his uncle, has been with him as a coach since he was very young, and was also the person who advised him to start hitting with his left hand instead of his right. Rafa played with both hands from a very young age, and Toni, not knowing that he was right-handed and seeing him hit with his left hand, encouraged him to continue along that path. In this way he would win. distinction and personality in the game and would also be a great opponent for his opponents. Since then, Toni Nadal has always supported him in all his competitions and tournaments, and of course, Rafa continues to play with his left hand.
2. What has been one of your most surprising triumphs?
In 2001, an exhibition match was being played on clay in Mallorca and Rafa Nadal went to see it when, Boris Becker, professional tennis player who played against Pat Cash, He was injured just before the match. At this point, Nadal was offered to play against the Australian opponent who had already won a Wimbledon Cup by then. At 15 years old, the Mallorcan tennis player accepted and not only enjoyed the game, but also beat Pat Cash.
3. What relationship do Rafa Nadal and Miguel Ángel have? Nadal?
Miguel Angel Nadal, He is the tennis player's paternal uncle. He was also a great sports fan. He played tennis, becoming a youth champion of the Balearic Islands, and also football, playing for FC Barcelona and Real Mallorca. He also played for eighteen consecutive seasons in the Spanish Football League. In this way, his uncle instilled in him a passion for football and tennis, supporting him from his first racket strokes at just 3 years old.
4. Did you know that Nadal is the youngest player to win an official ATP match?
In 2002, Rafa Nadal He played professionally in the International Series of Mallorca, where he was invited, and defeated Ramon Delgado, a player 10 years his senior who was ranked 81st in the world at the time. This victory marked a turning point in his tennis career, and from that moment on, Nadal's determination, perseverance and effort quickly led to his achievements.
5. The tennis player created the Rafa Nadal Foundation.
Rafa Nadal founded in 2008 with his mother, Ana Maria Parera, a non-profit organization through which to helpyoung people with intellectual disabilities and in vulnerable conditions to integrate socially and promote sporting talent without inconvenience. The tennis player has always had acts of altruism, having donated millions of euros to NGOs around the world and supporting different underprivileged causes throughout his career.
6. What profession did Rafa Nadal's grandfather have?
Master Rafael Nadal, was a musician from Manacor (Mallorca). He was born in 1929 in the same city as Rafa Nadal and from a very young age he began his artistic career at the Professional Conservatory of Music and Dance of the Balearic Islands and at the Superior Conservatory of Music in Valencia.
In addition to belonging to the choir and the orchestra for many years of his life, he also became director of the Artistic Association of Manacor. Later, when he had already won several sociocultural awards from the government, he delved fully into the Palma's main theatre, where he was responsible for its artistic activity until his death in 2015.
7. What is the name of Rafa Nadal's Tennis Academy?
Rafa Nadal Tennis AcademyThis is the name of the academy founded by the tennis player in 2018 in Mallorca, an educational opportunity that offers young people and adolescents from all over the world the possibility of having as mentors Rafa Nadal, to his uncle Toni Nadal already Carlos Moya, among many other professionals. The academy has sought to combine the importance of educational values with a passion for sport. In this way, and using an American methodology, the teachers try to instil in their students the tenacity, perseverance and determination required to be a professional tennis player, but without neglecting academic training.
8. Did Rafa Nadal finish his secondary school studies?
The tennis player, much to his regret, had to give up his studies in the 4th year of compulsory secondary education, a year in which he replaced high school with tennis courts. Rafa Nadal opted for racket sport, and given the demands that it requires, he could not combine training with classes. Later, in 2014, the University of the Balearic Islands wanted to name him Doctor Honoris Causa, a title that he rejected due to the media uproar created among the masses.
9. Did you know that Rafa Nadal is a Madrinista?
The tennis player, whose passion for football has been evident since he was a child, has been a Real Madrid fan for as long as he can remember. Whenever his professional career allows him, he goes to see all of his team's matches to show his support and dedication to them. At the age of 19, it was an honour for the tennis player to receive his first trophy. Roland Garros of his career at the hands of Zinedine Zidane, an idol for Rafa Nadal.
10 Who is Rafa Nadal's best friend?
In addition to sharing great professional moments with the Catalan, Rafa Nadal trusted in Pau Gasol to replace him as Spain's flag bearer at the 2012 London Olympics due to an injury that prevented the tennis player from fulfilling this title. We have also been able to see them together on their social networks at numerous professional and personal events.
If there is one thing that is clear, it is that Rafa Nadal deserves all the titles and achievements he has. Since he was very young, he has bet everything on tennis, and in this way, with hard work and effort, he has managed to reach the top, becoming one of the best tennis players in the world according to the ATP. If, like us, you are also a die-hard Rafa fan, these 10 interesting facts will surely have surprised you.
