A small person with a huge racket. The ball is bigger than his palm. On the stands are parents whose hearts beat in time with every stroke. A child in tennis is not just a cute picture. It's an entire industry, hopes, money, tears, and dreams. Every year, hundreds of boys and girls pick up a racket at the age of four, five, or six. But only a few reach the professional tour. Why? And most importantly, how not to break a child's childhood while trying to raise a champion? At What Age Do Champions Start The standard answer: between 5 and 7 years old. Roger Federer picked up a racket at 6. Serena Williams at 4. Rafael Nadal at 4 and a half. There are also earlier starts: Maria Sharapova began at 4, but in the USA. But early start is not a panacea. There are players who came to tennis at 8 or 9 years old and still became professionals. It's more important not the age of the first stroke, but the quality of training and, critically, physical preparation without injuries. Today, coaches do not recommend specializing only in tennis until the age of 10. A child should swim, run, play active games, and stretch. The broader the base, the less the risk of overloads and "growth diseases". The most common childhood injuries are Osgood-Schlatter's disease (knee), wrist tendinitis, and back pain from constant twisting. They occur when training volumes exceed the growing body's capabilities. The golden age for selection is 10-12 years. By this time, it's clear if there is coordination, explosive speed, and a sense of the ball. But even at 13-14 years, you can catch up if you work very hard. History knows late starts. How the Children's Tennis Pyramid Is Structured At the grassroots level are clubs and sections. There, hundreds of thousands of children around the world are engaged. They play on small courts with orange and green balls (according to the ITF "10 and Under Tennis" system). This is the right approach: a small court and a slow ball teach technique, not stren ... Read more