The number one ranked men’s singles tennis star is known for his charisma and dedication to the sport on and off the court. Did this world-class athlete ever have the time to go to college?
Novak Djokovic did not go to college. Instead, he dedicated his life to his tennis career, becoming a professional player in 2003, when he was 16 years old.
Read more below to find out about Djokovic’s decision to go all-in with tennis, and other top competitors who never went to college.
Djokovic’s Career
Djokovic was only four years old when he began playing tennis, and while he also enjoyed skiing and playing soccer, he preferred. When he was six years old, one of the best coaches in tennis, Jelena Gencic, spotted him playing at Mount Kopaonik, where his parents ran their restaurant and shop.
“I knew he would become a champion. It was crystal clear to me. He was focused, conscientious, and above all, talented,” Gencic said. “This is the greatest talent I have seen since Monica Seles.”
And she was not wrong. Gencic coached him for the next six years before she understood that he was developing too quickly for the area, and needed to go abroad to truly be challenged and to keep growing as a player.
Djokovic, twelve years old at the time, moved to Nikola Pilic’s tennis academy in Germany. At fourteen years old, his international career began, and he became a European champion in singles, doubles, and in team competition.
As the years went on, he became more and more focused on tennis. When the age came that he would normally be looking for colleges or universities to go to, he was transitioning into a full-fledged professional tennis player.
Now, Djokovic is ranked number one in men’s singles tennis, having accomplished what he’s always wanted to do, according to this ATP tour post. The post features a quote from Djokovic, and reads, “I’ve wanted the same things I’ve wanted since I was 7 years old. I want to be No. 1.”
His hard work and dedication have paid off. He’s been number one on and off since 2011, and while he must be proud of all of his achievements, he has expressed some regret that he never had a normal college experience.
“I never went to university… Well, if I can say, that’s one wish that I have in life, one regret, that I would like to go to some university, because I really like the idea of educating yourself and being a part of a group of students. It’s a fun period in a person’s life,” he said in a 2012 interview.
While he loves tennis–he must, since he’s worked so hard for it–he does recognize its cost. He went on to talk about what he missed out on, saying, “[T]ennis is a very demanding sport. It’s cruel in the way that you don’t really get a lot of free time to do things that you would like, to go places you would like to see, and to maybe experience something else, to learn something new.”
Watch some of Djokovic’s career highlights in the YouTube video below.
From High School to Pro
Every athlete is different, and the way that they reach their goals takes a different path for each one. Djokovic’s path didn’t seem to consider college–so who are some other athletes who didn’t go to college, either?
While the NBA is most notorious for their athletes coming straight out of high school, it’s also a very popular path to take in tennis.
Roger Federer, Martina Navratilova, Rafael Nadal, and Maria Sharapova are among the tennis players who never went to college.
As for other sports, big names like LeBron James, Lionel Messi, Tony Hawk, Alex Rodriguez, and more are all top athletes who didn’t go to college, either.