By: Dev Surender

Unless you have been living under a rock,  you probably know about Cristiano Ronaldo. Cristiano Ronaldo has been a legend in the football community or also known as soccer in the US.  Recently, a  fake Cristiano Ronaldo started uploading content on Tiktok. To no one’s surprise it quickly blew up, however, Tiktok has banned the account. After Cristiano Ronaldo discovered this scandal he decided to create a Youtube Channel. He officially did so on August 21, 2024. His channel , “UR – Cristiano’”, grew so popular it reached 1 million subscribers in just 90 minutes after the creation of  the platform. For average content creators, it takes 3 – 4+ years to reach 1 million subscribers. Not only that, only .028% or 1 in 3600 channels actually reach that 1 million subscribers milestone. Then what about 10 million subscribers? It took Cristiano Ronaldo 12 hours to reach 10 million subscribers.  It takes at least 12 years for a youtube channel to reach 10 million subscribers. Not only that, only 1 in 23567 youtube channels have at least 10 million subscribers. In a month, he got 60 million subscribers. All of this represents Cristiano Ronaldo’s fame. Cristiano Ronaldo has a massive fanbase of 1 billion followers on all of his platforms.

By: Grace Wang

Coming from a relatively unknown country with few tennis prospects, Anett Kontaveit never imagined great success. However, she proved all wrong as she reached unimaginable heights in a career that spanned for 13 years. 

As a junior, she showed great potential week in and week out with consistent results on the junior circuit, including winning the 2011 Orange Bowl  and reaching the 2012 Junior Girl’s US Open Final. For the first few years of her professional career, Kontaveit didn’t have a large breakthrough; she was a consistent force on the ITF Tour but lacked true success on the main tour. However, as a 19 year old, she made her breakthrough at the 2015 US Open. Having to qualify for the main draw, Kontaveit then won three straight main draw matches to reach the fourth round of the US Open where she lost to tennis icon, Venus Williams. This result propelled her into the top 100 in the world rankings for the first time. 

Kontaveit was unable to replicate her strong results in 2016, but 2017 flipped the switch. Kontaveit began to defeat top 10 players, such as Angelique Kerber, who was the world number one at the time, and Garbine Muguruza. Following a successful clay season, Kontaveit won her first WTA title on the grass courts of the Netherlands at the Ricoh Open. For the rest of the year, she continued to have consistent results and made finals which led to a ranking inside the top 30. 

For the next few years, she continued to slowly rise up the rankings through consistent results week in and week out, but once again, didn’t have a breakthrough. She reached many finals, but could never capitalize on her opportunities to secure the bigger trophy. In 2019, she reached a ranking of world number 14, becoming the highest ranked Estonian man or woman in tennis history as she surpassed Kaia Kanepi’s previous record of world number 15. She also reached the 2020 Australian Open quarterfinals, which would be her best grand slam appearance. Kontaveit became a mainstay in the top 30 from 2018-2021 and her name was recognized as a huge threat to any top player in any draw, but she rarely was able to pull off the upset. However, this all changed in 2021.

After a demoralizing five match losing streak which stretched from June to August and parting ways with long time coach, Nigel Sears, Kontaveit went on a tear for the last stretch of the year. She picked up titles in Cleveland, Ostrava, Moscow, and Romania and went on a 12 match win streak in the process. Kontaveit absolutely dominated her opponents with sheer aggression and force and as a result of this superb playing, Kontaveit found herself as a Top 10 player. She ended the year by qualifying for the WTA Finals and finishing runner up. Her win to loss record that year was 48-17 and ended the year ranked No.7. 

Kontaveit carried her strong form from 2021 into early 2022 where she picked up a title in St.Petersburg and a final in Doha, but after catching long Covid, her season was completely derailed. Despite early exits in almost every tournament she entered,  she still reached a career high ranking of World No.2. She continued to make finals, but was unable to win them. Another important moment of 2022 was the match Serena Williams in her last ever professional appearance in front of a rowdy American crowd. Kontaveit lost the match in three tough sets and ultimately became Serena Williams’ last win. At the end of the season, Kontaveit picked up a back injury and little did she know that it would completely change the course of her career. 

2023 wasn’t a good year, result wise. She could barely pick up wins and was losing to players ranked much lower than her; as a result, she fell out of the top 70 and was approaching a ranking of triple digits. But then, she dropped a bombshell. On June 20th, 2023, Kontaveit announced her retirement from professional tennis because the back injury she had picked up couldn’t allow her to play at such a high level competitively anymore. Her last professional appearance was the 2023 Wimbledon Championships where she lost in the second round, culminating a 13 year long career with success she had never dreamed of. 

Kontaveit looks back at the crowd one last time following her final professional appearance. 

Image: wtatennis.com 

Life after tennis has treated Kontaveit well; after an exhibition match against good friend, Ons Jabeur, in front of a sold out Estonian crowd, Kontaveit has traveled to many new places and recently gave birth to her first son in mid September. In addition, a book about her will be published in November and a documentary about her life has already been released in movie theaters in Estonia. 

Although Kontaveit came from a small country, she was able to climb to the top of tennis and become the best Estonian player in tennis history. Her legacy will live on and her impact on bringing the Estonian flag to tennis will not be forgotten.

By: Grace Wang

22-Grand Slam Champion, the King of Clay, and arguably one of the greatest tennis players in the history of the game, Rafael Nadal, has announced his retirement from professional tennis; his last event will be the Davis Cup Finals in late November where he will be representing Spain. The 38 year old’s last event was the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics, but in the last two years, he has been hampered and plagued by injuries. Although fans already knew his retirement was approaching as he had previously hinted that 2024 would be his last season, this announcement created shock and surprise all over the world. 

As one of the most beloved players on the tour and having one of the most decorated careers of all time, the responses to his retirement were fast, lengthy, and emotional. Novak Djokovic, one of the members of the Big Three (Djokovic, Federer, and Nadal) and arguably Nadal’s greatest rival as they have played 60 matches with Djokovic leading the H2H 31-29, responded by creating a lengthy Instagram post thanking the Spaniard for all of their matches and the lessons he had learned. Djokovic also stated that he would be flying to the Davis Cup Finals in Spain so he can pay tribute to Nadal’s extraordinary career. Meanwhile, young stars Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner both congratulated Nadal for his career and thanked him for inspiring them. 

In a 23 year long career, Nadal is truly one of the icons of the sport and has broken records that may never be broken again. Known for his fierce competitiveness and “die-hard” attitude, Nadal first broke into the scene when he defeated then World Number 1 Roger Federer in the 2004 Miami Open as an 18 year old. Following that win, he continued his ascent to the top of the game by winning titles including grand slams.  Eventually, he became World Number 1 in 2008 and a few years later, became part of the tennis icon trio, The Big Three. Nadal’s career has been extraordinary; he has won 22 grand slams (including a record 14 French Open titles), an Olympic Gold Medal in Beijing, 92 career titles, and has been ranked the top man in the world for 209 weeks. His legacy will last long after his retirement; not only because of his career statistics but because he has inspired millions to pick up a racquet and play the game of tennis. 

By: Aarav Sapra

Three weeks ago, Lebron James and his son, Bronny, rose from the bench and walked to the scorer’s table. The floor started to shake as the crowd’s noise grew louder, and a rush of excitement came as the two players were subbed in to make the first father-son duo in the league. The James family is known to be flourishing with basketball greatness, and as Lebron James’ incredible career enters its last few years, a new chapter is unfolding with his son, Bronny James, as he now plans to step in and take his father’s place at the professional level. While LeBron has been a dominant force in the NBA, with some considering him the greatest of all time, Bronny’s journey has just begun. His path is already generating massive attention, surprisingly more than the first-round pick of the 2024 draft, likely since fans and analysts are eager to see how the next generation of the James family will perform under the league. 

Lebron James is considered by many to be the greatest basketball player of all time. His achievements are unbelievable, including four NBA championships, four MVP awards, considerable All-Star appearances, and scoring more than forty-thousand points in his career in the NBA. His impact on the sport undeniably shaped two eras of the NBA.  The question is whether Bronny James will be able to continue Lebron’s legacy, as Lebron has mentored him throughout his whole life with a mentality that focuses on the same work ethic and basketball IQ that has made him a success. 

Bronny joined the league after spending his high school years at Sierra Canyon in Los Angeles; Bronny took his talents to USC, where he played for the school during the 2023-2024 college season. Unfortunately, he suffered a cardiac arrest that occurred in late July, making his session at USC brief. However, his season was enough to show that he could play at a high level. However, as the 2024 season concluded, Bronny made a surprising decision to affiliate himself with the NBA’s G League to continue improving and developing his skill level. Many other young players have also taken this route in recent years, including well-known NBA stars like Jalen Green and Scoot Henderson. The G League offers an opportunity to play against older, more experienced competition while still having access to NBA resources and training. For Bronny, this is a chance to grow both as a player and an individual. He will have the opportunity to develop a unique identity as his player while still being inspired by Lebron as they play together, forming a new father-and-son bond.

By: Grace Wang

2024 was a strange year for 37 year old Novak Djokovic; outside of winning his main priority of the year – the 2024 Paris Olympics and the last item on a legendary resume, his other results were lackluster to say the least. Early exits and losses to much less accomplished and ranked players plagued his season, raising the question – is this the end of the 37 year old’s dominant reign on the ATP tour? 

Besides early losses, consistency issues, and the extraordinary domination of youngsters, Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, Djokovic was also troubled by injuries, including a knee surgery just a few weeks prior to Wimbledon. Few expected Djokovic to go far on the grass court slam, but he proved them wrong by making it to the final. There, he was badly beaten by Carlos Alcaraz, causing many to question if this meant the decline of the GOAT of tennis.

 However, as shown many times, Djokovic beat all odds by winning the gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics, his first Gold medal and his only true remaining goal in tennis as he had accomplished everything else. In the final, he defeated Carlos Alcaraz in two tiebreaker sets, in one of the best quality matches of the year. He finally won gold for Serbia, and knew that he had completed the sport. In addition, alongside his Olympics run, he defeated longtime rival and fellow tennis icon, Rafael Nadal, in their 60th and final professional match as Nadal had announced his retirement at the end of the year. After the Olympics, Djokovic played two more tournaments; the US Open and Shanghai Masters where he lost in the third round and final. 2024 was a lackluster year for the Serb, who outside of winning the Olympics, won no other titles, which was extremely uncharacteristic. 

With his body deteriorating with age and the rise of the Next Gen as indicated by Djokovic’s results in 2024, it appears that his golden career may be coming to a close soon. However, if there is anything that is to be learned from the Serb’s career, it is that Djokovic can never be counted out completely.