WELLBEING Katie Boulter British No1 tennis star Katie Boulter: ‘I’m coming out of my shell’
By Camilla Foster, PA
Currently the British number one in women’s singles, tennis star Katie Boulter has spoken about her increasing confidence on court and about the people who inspire her.
“The more I play on bigger stages, the more I come out of my shell,” shared the 28-year-old. “I can be quite shy sometimes, but tennis gives me that outlet to really express how I feel and to show how tough I can be in big moments.
“And that gives me a lot of confidence and really pushes me to be the best version of myself.”
The Leicester-born athlete says her family are the driving force behind her success, as well as her biggest source of inspiration.
“My family are my biggest inspiration in life and in tennis,” said Boulter.“They have given everything to me throughout their lives.
“When they’re proud of me, I know that I’m motivated and doing the best that I possibly can.”
Incredible racket skills clearly run in her blood, as her mother Sue Boulter is a former tennis coach who played tennis at the county level and represented Great Britain as a junior.
Her grandparents on her mother’s side, Brian and Jill Gartshore, were also avid players who met and bonded through the sport.
“My grandma was county captain for 20 years and my grandpa played tennis his whole entire life,” revealed Boulter.“That’s actually how they met, so I’ve kind of grown up with tennis and them being a huge part of it.”
Jill died two days before Boulter’s second round Wimbledon victory in 2022 against Czech Republic’s Karolína Plíšková who was seeded number one in the world at the time.
Boulter said her grandparents’ unwavering support has been crucial to her development as an athlete.
“I was always very close to my grandparents growing up and was lucky to have them around all the time,” reflected Boulter.“They were picking me up from tennis, taking me to school, along with my mum, and I would literally see them in the corner of the playground waving because they knew that was the time of my break.They were a huge part of my life. “I always used to go to the Leicestershire Lawn Tennis Club and spend a lot of time watching them,” she added.“They’d play fours and all have a nice cup of tea afterwards, and that was a huge part of their life, and just something they enjoyed, and it kept them competitive and active and healthy.”
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