In 2013, the tennis world believed that Serena Williams’ heir had finally arrived after a previously unknown name forced her to retire from the quarter-finals of the 2013 Australian Open. The heir is an American professional tennis player known as Sloane Stephens. Years later, she would continue to rise in the sport as she continues to make a name for herself in surprising ways. Here is everything you need to know about Sloane.
Sloane Stephens Biography
On March 20, 1993, the famous tennis star was born in Plantation, Florida, the son of Sybil Smith and John Stephens. Sloane is of Trinidadian descent, she was raised by her mother after her father left her when she was just a toddler.
Unlike many other stars who started playing or loving her sport at a very early age, Sloane first got in touch with the sport in a serious way after she was introduced to it by her mother and stepfather until she was 9 years old.
She soon showed great promise, which was not surprising since she was born into an athletic family with a mother who was a professional swimmer and a father who was a professional American football player. Sloane Stephens’ father played for the New England Patriots in the National Football League (NFL) from 1988 to 1993.
Just two years after being introduced to the sport, she decided to make a life out of it by moving to Boca Raton, Florida, to train at the Evert Tennis Academy.
Before she began her professional career, Stephens had made a name for herself on the junior tennis scene with a string of victories, including the 2010 Wimbledon Girls’ Doubles Championship, which she took home with Tímea Babos.
Professionally, she has had a good run so far. She made her first major appearance in 2013 after defeating Serena Williams, who was then ranked third in the world at the 2013 Wimbledon Championships and reached the semi-finals before being forced to retire by the then world No. 1, Victoria Azarenka.
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However, it was not until the 2015 Citi Open that Stephens won her first major title, after finishing as the winner of the competition. Her first US Open title was to follow in 2017, where she defeated Madison Keys to become number one.
By the second half of 2018, the best ranking she has achieved in the world is number 9, and she has also won almost 10 career titles with her racket.
Her Family: Father, Mother (Sybil Smith)
The life of Sloane Stephens has not been without tragedy, especially considering her family life. As mentioned earlier, she was raised by her mother as a single parent after her father left her when she was still a child.
After her father left her mother, who was an All-American swimmer in her day, she later found and married Sheldon Farrell, who was to play a major role in her life as a tennis player because he also played the sport.
The first tragedy that happened to Stephens was the death of Sheldon Farrell when she was about 14 years old. The next would be the death of her biological father, who she lost in a car accident in 2009. Before his death, John Stephens was able to repair broken fences with his daughter and rebuild a good relationship with her.
Just like the sport in her family, her brother, Shawn Farrel also flows into the sport. He is both a baseball and football player, although he has yet to make it big in either sport.
Sloane Stephens’ Boyfriend
As for her relationships, the young, beautiful tennis player has not dated many men in the past. Instead, she has only been with two. Her first relationship was with her tennis colleague and Olympic gold medalist Jack Sock. The relationship between the two, which began in 2013, was quite open and public, but it did not last beyond 2014.
The next person to become her boyfriend is the American football player Jozy Altidore, with whom she has been dating since 2017. Just like their first relationship, Sloane and Jozy, who were born on 6 November 1989, are very open about their relationship, and even in the second half of 2018, they were still together a lot as a couple.
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Net Worth
Sloane Stephens is not necessarily the greatest tennis player out there, but on the court, he is a surprising bench. That made it very interesting for her to watch and follow the game, but it also made sure that she was doing well in terms of her fortune.
She is in Forbes Magazine’s top 30 in 2018 and has a net worth that can be estimated at over $10 million. Although some sources put her at $4 million, the beautiful tennis sensation has won nearly $10 million in career awards. She also has a number of sponsorship agreements with brands such as Precision Nutrition and Under Armour. She was also a worldwide ambassador for American Express.
