Spanish tennis star Rafael Nadal isn’t just good at the game. He’s a good person too!
During an exhibition doubles match (with Simon Solbas) against Carlos Moya and John McEnroe, Nadal stopped the game mid-serve. Why?
A mum in the stands had lost sight of her toddler daughter. Hearing the commotion (and the clear distress in the mum’s voice), Nadal put the match on pause while everyone searched for the little girl.
A bystander quickly found the girl and returned her to the frantic mum. Hey, we all know that kids tend to wander (especially toddlers). You turn your head for a second or even blink your eyes and suddenly poof – she’s gone. Like most of us, this mum lost it when she couldn’t find her little girl. Who wouldn’t?
Even though the woman at the centre of this story acted like any mum would, the tennis star went far and above what many in his position would. Instead of continuing on and ignoring what was going on in the crowd, he put the lost girl’s safety above everything else.
Nadal may be a tennis superstar, but he didn’t seem to care that the 7,000 or so people in the stands were there for him. With tears rolling down her face, the mum grabbed up her daughter. Not only was the mum overwhelmed, but the crowd (and players themselves—especially McEnroe) were all obviously emotional.
While the knowledge that the girl was reunited with her mum is reward enough, Nadal also won the exhibition game! This certainly isn’t the first time that the tennis star has shown kindness towards children. In 2010 the Rafa Nadal Foundation (a charitable organisation that the player founded in 2008) opened the Rafael Nadal Tennis School in Anantpur, India.
