21-year-old Gauff can be described as an athlete protégé as she hails from a family of athletes. Her parents, Corey Gauff and Candy Odom Gauff were both pro athletes in their youth days.
Candi played quite a number of sports when she was in high school and college including basketball. Her husband, Corey was also an athlete who turned out to be a coach as well.
Now, both parents of Coco are invested in the career growth and success of their eldest child. Despite having 2 younger children who are also sportives, the tennis star is the one who has put the Gauff name in the limelight.
Candy Odom Gauff was a Track and Field Pro
Coco’s mother was also a professional athlete back in the day. She was well-known as a track and field athlete who jumped, ran, participated in hurdles, and also ‘throwing’ sports.
As a breakout athlete, Candy was phenomenal and won titles such as South Florida Sun Sentinel Athlete of the year, twice. While schooling at Florida State University, she held the record for the 7th-best heptathlon performance. Candy Gauff, Cori Gauffs mother, also had a score of 4,911 in the history of the FSU 1991.
Coco Gauff’s Father, Corey Gauff was a Former Basketball Player
Corey Gauff is the second parent of the professional tennis player, was a pro basketball player in his youth days. He attended Georgia State University where he played basketball.
He didn’t pursue professional basketball though and soon went on to get a regular job as a healthcare executive. He also served as a coach for a while, helping young athletes to grow in their sporting careers.
Both Corey and Candy Quit their Jobs to Tend to Coco’s Career
Corey Gauff quit his job as a healthcare executive to focus on building the career of his daughter. Despite being a coach already, Corey dedicated time to his daughter in order to make sure that she becomes the best tennis player. He is known to be Coco Gauff’s Head Coach and works alongside her other coaches.
Candy who was working as an educator also had to quit her job to focus on educating her first child. She serves as a personal teacher to Cori especially when she goes to tournaments around the world.
The young athlete, however, has plans of attending a regular college like other students do.
Now, both parents make it a duty to watch their daughter’s games. They are quite supportive and would continue to show support during all her games.
Cori Gauff goes head-to-head with Madison Keys on Thursday, March 23, 2023, and the game looks to be a tough one.
READ ALSO: Coco Gauff Net Worth- All About Her Endorsements, Prize Money, and Sudden Rise
Corey and Candy have 2 other Children
Coco Cori Gauff is the first child of the former athletes but she has 2 other siblings. She has 2 younger brothers named Codey Gauff and Cameron Gauff, both under 10 as of 2023.
Though the boys are still quite young, they have already started showing prospects of following in the pathway of their older family members. Cameron plays football for the Delray 8U who recently won the Super Bowl for the second year in a row.
Candy Odom Gauff’s Parents also have a History of Sports
Coco Gauff’s maternal grandmother, Yvonne Odom nee Lee attended Carver High, an African-American designated school. While there, she was engaged in quite a number of activities which included pageantry, and recitation.
Above all, she also played basketball and was quite good at it. The love for the sport may have also attracted her to her teenage boyfriend who ended up being her husband, years later.
Eddie ‘Red’ Odom, Candy’s father was a baseball who turned the sports after playing football at Bethune-Cookman University. He used to play for winter and minor league baseball teams before he established a baseball Little League in the hometown of Delray Beach which included black children.
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