Coco Gauff Says She Is Trying to Ignore Those Prodigy Labels: 'It'll Put Too Much Pressure on Me'

At just 15 years old,Cori “Coco” Gauffmade history when she became the youngest player to qualify for Wimbledon, and then again when she defeated five-time Wimbledon champion Venus Williams in an impressive 2019 debut against the 39-year-old veteran player.

Headlines across outlets, fromESPNtoThe New York Times,began calling the teen a tennis prodigy as she quickly became a household name — and evenreceived praise from former First Lady Michelle Obama.

However, in her August cover story forTeen Vogue, Coco and her parents — Candi and Corey Gauff — reveal they aren’t fans of the label.

“I try not to think about it, because it’ll put too much pressure on [me],” Coco toldTeen Vogue.

Camila Falquez for Teen Vogue

And the Florida high schooler’s father agrees, attributing his daughter’s success to her hard work and self-motivation.

“When it comes to something like tennis, [Coco] works hard,” he explained. “This is not an accident. She might be overnight popular, but she’s not an overnight success.”

Even at just seven and eight years old, Coco worked hard and pushed to be the best. Her former coach during those years, Jewel Peterson, called the athlete a “coach’s dream.”

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“I never had to tell her, ‘Run your laps, do your dynamic.’ I never had to tell her how to start her practice. She did it on her own,” Peterson toldTeen Vogue. “To this day, I still have not seen anybody that driven.”

While tennis often feels like a release for her, Coco told the magazine that she also stays self-motivated to continue practicing and continue improving because of her love for winning.

“I just want to win more,” she said. “I love winning more than I hate losing.”

source: people.com