Caro: I could have been a swimmer

 

Originally published on: 28/02/12 11:04

Caroline Wozniacki’s golf game is improving thanks to the influence of her boyfriend, Rory McIlroy, but it is not the only other sport the 21-year-old Dane enjoys. Wozniacki, who meets Julia Goerges in the semi-finals of the Dubai Duty Free Championships this evening, likes playing football, is a decent runner and even enjoys getting in the boxing ring – without going so far as trading punches.
 
Swimming, however, is the one other sport in which she might have had a lengthy career. “I had to choose between swimming and tennis when I was around 10 or 11,” she said. “My swimming coach, who was actually my neighbour, was getting so frustrated with me because I would never show up to the competitions.”
 
The timing of the tennis tournaments suited the young Wozniacki better, to the disappointment of her swimming coach. “In the end he told me: ‘OK, I’m not going to move you up to a better group. I’m just going to let you suffer with the worse swimmers unless you choose to come.’
 
“I was like: ‘Whatever.’ I didn’t feel like waking up at seven or being in the pool at seven and swimming and people are throwing up. I preferred the outdoors and the fun – just having a barbecue after practice and winning ice creams. My Dad would set up goals for me to win ice cream, so I definitely preferred that.”
 
Wozniacki’s father, Piotr, and her brother, Patrik, both played football professionally. Caroline, who is a keen supporter of Liverpool, also likes the game, both as a spectator and as a player, but said she would never risk playing a match, even for fun. “I would be scared that I would get tackled or something would happen, so I would never do that,” she said. “But I’ll just kick a ball around and have a bit of fun with it for a warm-up.”

Now get the WORLD’S BEST TENNIS MAGAZINE here