Coco Gauff was born in Atlanta in March 2004. After getting into the sport at age seven, Gauff moved to Florida to pursue her dream of playing tennis. Her athletic ability is cemented in her genes: both of her parents played sport at collegiate level – her mum, Candi Gauff, did track and field, and her dad, Corey Gauff, played basketball at Georgia State University.

Since she was 10 Gauff has been training at the Mouratoglou Academy in France: she’s coached by her dad, and is homeschooled by her mum. She may be playing at one of the biggest tennis tournaments in the world, but she’s still got to get an education – that’s why the evening before the first of her qualifying matches at Wimbledon, she was taking a science test.

“I ended up getting a B on the exam, which was pretty good, considering I took it at 11 at night and I had to wake up the next day for a match,” Gauff told CNN.

“After my science test, I guess some of my teachers saw the interview,” she explained. “Before that … only one teacher knew I play tennis, and I don’t think they knew I was pro. And now all of them except one know I play and they’re all cheering me on.”

Coco Gauff: Teen tennis star wins her first WTA title at the Linz open