Young stars in the world of sports – 2014 has seen some remarkable talent emerge in the sporting arena. Skill, quality and presence of mind on the track have kept these guys going ahead and reach the pinnacle of glory.
2014 has seen some remarkable talent emerge in the sporting arena. Skill, quality and presence of mind on the track have kept these guys going ahead and reach the pinnacle of glory.
With some of the big names fading with time, it’s time for the younger lot to take over and rule the roost.
It’s a matter of time when the world will see no Cristiano Ronaldo, Leo Messi or Novak Djokovic. But they will surely see some bright, young talents who are taking the steps of supremacy. Here’s taking a glance through these starlets who could earn BIG in years to come:
Martin Odegaard (Football)
Norwegian football scripted history when countryman Martin Odegaard became the youngest player in the history of the European Championship to take field in competitive sport. Aged 15 years and 300 days, Odegaard beat the previous record held by Sigurdur Jonsson of Iceland, who had held it since playing in a Euro 1984 qualifier aged 16 and 251 days. Touted as the ‘Norwegian Messi’, Odegaard is being tracked by a host of top clubs such as Real Madrid and Manchester United. With a big career lying ahead of him, Odegaard can go onto become one of Norway’s brightest talent ever produced.
Max Verstappen (Formula One)
F1 has seen some of the biggest stars take centrestage with the likes of Michael Schumacher and the late Aryton Senna amongst many but here’s another teen sensation who could join in that elusive list – Max Verstappen. 16-year old Dutchman has joined F1 team Torro Rosso and will become the youngest Formula One driver in history next season. He is son of the former F1 driver Jos Verstappen and has been racing this season in the European F3 Championship. Verstappen will break the record held by Spaniard Jaime Alguersuari, who made his debut with Torro Rosso in 2009 at the age of 19 and 125 days.
Kuldeep Yadav (Cricket)
When BCCI announced the 15-man squad for the West Indies ODI team, the name Kuldeep Yadav also made the cut in the list of Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni. The Uttar Pradesh-born is a specialist chinaman bowler, an art in spin bowling which is a rare breed, made his name in the U-19 World Cup this year as well as with the IPL 2014 Champions, Kolkata Knight Riders.
Catherine Bellis (Tennis)
Catherine Cartan “CiCi” Bellis has made a jumpstart in the world of tennis. With Serena Williams reaching the prime of her career, US tennis might see a sensation in ‘CiCi’ Bellis. On Tuesday, the 15-year-old stunned the world in the US Open this year by beating world number 12 Dominika Cibulkova, 6-1, 4-6, 6-4. With that, Bellis became the youngest player to win a U.S. Open match since Anna Kournikova in 1996 and is touted for bigger days ahead. In coming months, watch out for CiCi who could send a forehand swinging down the net!
