Around 15 months after the birth of her second daughter, the German tennis player Tatjana Maria is in the semifinals of Wimbledon.
It could be her big year: Tatjana Maria (34) is in the semifinals of Wimbledon and plays against the world number two Ons Jabeur (27). This puts the German tennis player at the peak of her performance so far – even though she gave birth to her second daughter Cecilia (1) only about 15 months ago.
The family business Maria
Tatjana Maria is on the tennis court with the whole family. They live in the Williams sisters’ neighborhood on the east coast of Florida. Her husband, Charles-Edouard Maria (48), has taken on the role of coach for his wife. Her eight-year-old daughter Charlotte is already practicing for her own tennis career.
Her father, Heinrich Malek, who died in 2008, once impressed with his sporting achievements – he was a national handball player for Poland. It wasn’t Maria’s only stroke of fate in 2008. Shortly before her father’s death, she suffered a pulmonary embolism due to a thrombosis at the tournament in Indian Wells. According to media reports at the time, she was in mortal danger and had to endure several operations.
Being a mother has top priority
It may be a strange coincidence, but the birth of her children seems to have given Maria a new boost in her career. About a year and a half after the birth of her first daughter in Wimbledon, she reached round three for the first time. This time her second daughter was born 15 months ago and Maria is in the semi-finals.
Perhaps her role as a mother also helps her to remain deeply relaxed in the most important moments. After all, being a mother is “the most important thing in my life,” quotes the “Bild” newspaper Maria. “My children are my top priority. Family is the most important thing. Nothing will change that.”
Now she is in the semifinals against her close friend Ons Jabeur. The Tunisian also plays with her daughter Charlotte – and is currently trying to get her on her side, as Jabeur jokes. In addition to her career, Maria is also committed to more rights for mothers and families in tennis, for nationwide childcare and special rules for women after childbirth, for example.
