Rafael Nadal was born on 3 June 1986 in Manacor, on Mallorca. He started playing at four at the Manacor Tennis Club, where his uncle Toni, a former player, worked as a coach. Nadal was naturally right-handed and hit his forehand with two hands; Toni encouraged him to play left-handed, believing it would give him a natural advantage. His uncle coached him from childhood until February 2017, and together they won 16 major titles and two Olympic gold medals.
In 2005, two days after his 19th birthday, he won his first French Open. It began the most dominant record any player has built at a single major: 14 titles at Roland Garros. Between 2005 and 2007 he won 81 consecutive matches on clay, the longest single-surface winning streak of the Open Era, and 63 of his 92 singles titles came on clay. His main weapon was his left-handed forehand, struck with heavy topspin.
He proved far more than a clay-court specialist. In 2008 he beat Roger Federer, his great rival, in the Wimbledon final, won Olympic singles gold in Beijing and became world No. 1 for the first time in August. In 2010 he won the US Open to complete the career Grand Slam. He won the US Open again in 2013, 2017 and 2019, and the Australian Open in 2009 and 2022.
He won 22 major singles titles, 14 French Opens, four US Opens, two Wimbledons and two Australian Opens, along with 36 Masters titles, 1,092 match wins and 209 weeks at No. 1. He won Olympic doubles gold in Rio in 2016 and the Davis Cup with Spain five times. His career was marked by injuries, including a chronic foot problem and hip surgery in 2023. He announced his retirement on 10 October 2024 and played his last match for Spain at the Davis Cup Finals in Málaga in November. He founded the Rafa Nadal Academy in Manacor in 2016.