After a dominant fourth-round display at the 2024 Australian Open, Coco Gauff talked about the messages written on her sneakers. She also revealed a misconception her mother held about her habit of looking at her New Balance Coco CG1 shoes from the American’s signature personal line.
Gauff advanced to her first-ever Australian Open quarter-final and that too after without breaking a sweat in the fourth round. She thrashed Magdalena Frech 6-1, 6-2 to set up a final eight meeting with Marta Kostyuk.
Even as she continues to impress with her tennis, her striking pair of sneakers have also attracted attention. Many noticed the shoes had some text engraved on them. During the post-match on-court interview, anchor Jelena Dokic asked Gauff what these messages were. She said one line is what her father told her, a saying which inspires her. Another piece of text is the coordinates for the public parks she grew up playing tennis at.
“A lot of things written. One is ‘You can change the world with your racquet.’ Something my dad told me since I was a little girl. It’s an inspiration for why I feel it’s important to speak up about certain issues. Another thing is the coordinates to the park I grew up at in Pompey Park. I grew up playing on public tennis courts in Delray Beach Florida.”
Finally, she said her brothers’ names are also engraved and she is proud of them.
“The last thing I have my little brothers’ name on the show. I love you guys. Cameron just got MVP for his football team. So I’m really proud of you Cam.”
Gauff also disclosed a hilarious misunderstanding her mother, Candi, had. Whenever the World No.4 looked down, her mother thought she was feeling low and underconfident. However, Gauff was only looking at her shoes for motivation.
While Gauff’s father, Corey, did most of the tennis coaching, Candi, a former track athlete, helped from the sidelines with their daughter’s education and mental conditioning.
Coco Gauff got signature Coco CG1 shoe line and extension with New Balance in 2022
Coco Gauff is set for a bumper payday after advancing to the quarter-finals of the 2024 Australian Open. She will hope to go all the way and get her hands on the A$3,150,000 ($2,130,975) winner’s check. After a breakthrough 2023 season which included her first WTA 1000 and first Grand Slam titles, her career prize money tally is $12,250,713. Her current net worth is estimated to be over $10 million, and she is projected to cross the $15 million mark in 2024.
New Balance has been associated with Gauff ever since she made her WTA debut at 14. In November 2022, they shook hands on a long-term extension. While the official figures are not available, media sources report her earnings from the American company to be around $1 million per annum (via Sportskeeda). A few months before this deal, New Balance released a signature line for Gauff, the Coco CG1. Alongside her renewal, they also announced a new colourway called Coco CG1 All in the Family.
The Coco CG1 is available for public sale on the New Balance official website starting from $169.99. Fans in Australia can purchase it for A$240 onwards. Certain models are on discount in the UK, on sale starting from £70. Ahead of the 2024 Australian Open, New Balance and Coco Gauff released a commercial to launch a new colourway for the Grand Slam event.
