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Anna Leigh Waters breaks records for precocity. A professional player at the age of 12, the American, world number 1 in pickleball, has just become, at barely 18 years old, the first champion of this mix of tennis, badminton and ping-pong to join the Nike team, we learned on January 13. On her Instagram page, the young woman soberly commented: “New chapter. Same goal. Just Do It”, taking up the famous slogan of the brand. The same day, she confided to the television channel CNBC: “Growing up, I saw my idols wear the comma mark in their biggest moments. So joining the Nike family is a dream come true. » A rather lucrative reality – rumors speak of an 8-figure contract – which puts the young athlete into orbit, carried by the strike force of the equipment manufacturer who has dressed the basketball player Michael Jordan, the tennis player Serena Williams and the golfer Tiger Woods.
Covered in gold
Born in Pennsylvania in 2007, Anna Leigh Waters moved to South Florida with her family before she could even walk. It was in Delray Beach, about 70 kilometers from Miami, that she grew up, with her feet in the water. Pickleball entered her life during Hurricane Irma in 2017. While the whole family had gone to take shelter in Pennsylvania, her grandfather convinced her to play with him, behind the house. That’s the trigger. As soon as she returned to the south of the country, she and her mother, with whom the young girl teamed up, registered for all the local competitions. Anna Leigh Waters has won 96% of the 578 singles matches she played on the professional circuit (Professional Pickleball Association). Since the start of her career, she has won 181 gold medals and 39 triple crowns, winner in all three categories: singles, doubles and mixed doubles.
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