"He always instilled into me how to uplift other people": Coco Gauff on finding inspiration from father Corey to use her voice for those in need
Coco Gauff recently talked about her father Corey instilling in her the values that have inspired her to help those in need.
Gauff marked her 20th birthday with a thumping win over Elise Mertens at the Indian Wells 2024. She crushed Mertens 6-0, 6-2 on Wednesday, March 13, to gain entry into the quarterfinals of the competition for the second successive year.
The American has established herself as one of the top names in tennis as a teenager. She has used her position to contribute to society in ways, including raising awareness during the Black Lives Matter movement, transforming Brownwood Park in Atlanta for kids, and donating money to Madison Keys' 'Kindness Wins Foundation'.
After her win over Mertens at Indian Wells on Wednesday, Gauff credited her father Corey's contribution in inspiring her to work for the upliftment of people around her. During her post-match press conference, she said:
"I was taught from a very young age of the privilege that I have, and the way that my dad [Corey] grew up was definitely not, you know, not the best childhood. So he always instilled that into me and always instilled how to uplift other people.
"Because it took, you know, one person to help uplift him and that made a difference in his life which by-product made a difference in my life and maybe I can continue that cycle with some other kid."
Coco Gauff: "Even if pro tennis wasn't the way for me, I would have been very active in other areas of life"
During her press conference after defeating Elise Mertens at Indian Wells 2024, Coco Gauff suggested that she would have been involved in social work even if professional tennis hadn't worked out.
"I just knew I was going to do that regardless of how my life went, even if pro tennis wasn't the way for me, I would have been very active in other areas of, you know, life and the world in general," Coco Gauff said.
The reigning US Open champion continued:
"I think for me that's just one of the main things that I knew I wanted to do obviously since I was young. So I think that's just more where I come from and just the people that raised me always taught me to uplift the other people around me."
Third seed Gauff will next face China's Yuan Yue in her quarterfinal match on Thursday, March 14, at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. The winner of the match will face either Emma Navarro or Maria Sakkari in the semis.