Advised to abandon Ice Skating Ambitions

Credit Tennis.com

Elena Andreyevna Rybakina is one of the world’s  best woman tennis players. Elena Rybakina indulged in gymnastics and ice skating at an early age and was advised to opt for tennis as she was tall.

Credit EUROSPORT

Elena expresses her feelings of kinship with Russian and Kazakh people.She was born in Moscow and plays under the flag of Kazakhstan since the year 2018. When she was struggling to move up the international tennis ranking circuit the Kazakhstan Tennis Federation offered her sponsorship and as her father,a TV producer, was unable to find a sponsor for her in Russia hence the family switched her nationality.Kazakhstan is well endowed in oil and gas reserves , minerals and grain with a high per capita income perhaps that was the reason the Kazakhstan Tennis Federation was able to spend lavishly on her training and travelling on the international tennis circuit.Having a Kazakh nationality shielded her from sanctions imposed by US against Russia.

Credit South China Morning Post

Elena was determined to excel and her gruelling long hours of practise paid off when she won the prestigious Wimbledon Tennis tournament in the year 2022 by having the better of a Tunisian girl Ons Jabeur .She became a superstar overnight , fashion icon and a role model for Kazakh girls who were keen to emulate her in sports as well as fashion. Of course the fact that she grossed $ 3.3 million from endorsements and prize earnings appealed to women in her country.

Credit The Sport Review

Her path to success continues and she made it to the final of the Australia Open this year clocking the fastest serve at at 195 kilometers per hour.Elena stands 6 feet tall and at the age of 23 shrugs off marriage prospects.She concentrates on practice and keeps her personal life private and is fond of her dog whom she calls Mulia. It would be interesting to see whether Kazakh girls follow in her footsteps and reach it to the top in international sports.