Greatest child sporting prodigies of all time

Champions are made but Prodigies are born. Not many people have an idea what to do with their lives when they are in school but the people in this list are the ones who defied the odds, who broke barriers and the ones who changed the way we see sports altogether.

Marjorie Gestring

Major Success at Age : 13, Sports : Diving

What were we doing when we were 13? Learning to use a computer perhaps? But Marjorie Gestring already had an Olympics Gold medal when she was 13. In the 1936 Summer Olympics, this little girl broke the barriers and won gold in the 3m springboard event. She could have won more but the games were cancelled due to the World War II in 1940 and 1944.

Her record for being the Youngest Olympic Gold Medalist will remain intact for centuries because the minimum age of Olympic participants now is 14.

Sachin Tendulkar

Major Success at Age : 16, Sports: Cricket

With only one First-Class year under his belt, the young Sachin Tendulkar, aged 16 was picked up by the Indian National team for the tour of Pakistan.

There, he faced off against one of the most lethal bowling line-up that even the greats feared. During a Test match, a bouncer tested him and broke his nose. He was bleeding but rejected medical assistance. The whole stadium was fearing for the safety of the schoolboy from Mumbai. When he walked back to the dressing room, the whole pavilion was on its feet applauding him. A few weeks later, the same school boy tore apart the great Abdul Quadir for 27 runs in a single over.

The success that followed him after that tour was inevitable. Sachin Tendulkar remains on top of all the best products that India has produced over all these years.