Elena OstapenkoLatvian tennis player
Date of Birth: 08.06.1997
Country: Latvia |
Content:
- Elena Ostapenko - Biography
- Transition to Professional Tennis
- Breakthrough and Roland Garros Victory
- Personal Life
Elena Ostapenko - Biography
Early Life and Tennis CareerElena Ostapenko was born on June 8, 1997, in Riga, Latvia, to Ukrainian parents. Her father, Evgeny Ostapenko, used to be a football player for the Zaporizhzhya football team 'Metalurh'. Elena's mother, Yelena Yakovleva, was also involved in tennis and became her first coach. At the age of 12, Elena decided to focus on tennis and her mother started looking for opportunities to support her expensive training.
Elena quickly became one of the strongest junior players in Latvia and Europe. In 2010, she became the best junior player at the G5 tournament in Jurmala, and a few months later, she won the junior tournament Les Petits As in France. Elena's success continued, and she reached the quarterfinals of the Australian Open in 2013, becoming the first Latvian player to achieve this feat. She also won the junior Grand Slam title at Wimbledon in the same year.
Transition to Professional Tennis
In 2012, Elena started playing in adult tournaments. She initially participated in several tournaments in Estonia and Latvia, where she had convincing victories. She then competed in the WTA Moscow qualifying tournament, steadily improving her ranking. Although her singles victories remained within the 10,000 level for some time, Elena and her partner Anett Kontaveit won a 25,000 tournament in doubles.
In 2014, Elena began participating in WTA tournaments and achieved remarkable results. She reached the quarterfinals of the Tashkent Open and made it to the final of a 25,000 tournament in France. Elena continued to climb the rankings, entering the top 200 in 2015 and reaching the top 100 in 2016.
Breakthrough and Roland Garros Victory
Elena's breakthrough came in June 2017 when she participated in the French Open. With the guidance of the renowned Spanish tennis player Anabel Medina Garrigues, Elena reached the quarterfinals and defeated top-ranked players such as Caroline Wozniacki and Timea Bacsinszky. On her 20th birthday, Elena faced Simona Halep in the final and won the match in three sets, becoming the surprise champion of the tournament.
Following her Roland Garros victory, Elena continued to compete in various tournaments. Although she didn't reach the same level of success as at the French Open, she remained a prominent player on the professional circuit.
Personal Life
Elena Ostapenko celebrated her 21st birthday in July 2018 with a big party in Riga. She has been in a relationship with football player Arturs Karasauskas. Despite the sudden loss of her father in the same year, Elena continued to compete and pursue her ambitions in tennis.
Currently, Elena is focused on training and setting ambitious goals for her career. She is determined to achieve further success in the sport and continues to progress in the rankings.