A new post on what Li Na’s Australian Open win could mean for her career both on and off the court will be up tomorrow, but in the meantime, here are some pictures doing the rounds on the Chinese internet of the country’s biggest sports star in her (very) formative years…
Li Na at 100 days (a big celebration in China)
Li Na, aged 2, with her great-grandmother and her uncle (apparently)Aged 4, in a park in her hometown WuhanShowing some of her famous personality at age 5, a year before she took up not tennis, but badmintonThe family resemblance is clearLi Na, aged 6, with mother Li Yanping and father Li Shengpeng, a professional badminton player who passed away from a rare heart disease when Li Na was 14.Flares clearly came to China a little later than elsewhere (this was taken in the late 1980s)Li Na, aged 16, with her grandparents and cousinWith husband and former coach Jiang Shan.Nike came on the scene early, but note no rogue sponsor patches in those days!
