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Brazilian footballer Ronaldo de Assis Moreira, commonly known as Ronaldinho, first hit the media headlines after he scored all 23 goals in a 23-0 victory against a local club team when he was just 13 years of age. He was identified as a rising star at the under-17 world championship in 1997 where he scored two goals.

Former cricketer and now coach Kepler Wessels captained South Africa after playing 24 Tests for Australia. He was the first man to have played one day international cricket for two countries. He played first-class cricket for Orange Free State, Western Province, Northern Transvaal, Eastern Province and Griqualand West. In Australia, he played for Queensland, and in England, he played for Sussex.

Jarno Trulli was born in Pescara, Abruzzo, Italy. His parents were motorsport fans and named him after Jarno Saarinen, the Finnish Grand Prix motorcycle racing champion who met with a tragic end at Monza in 1973. His parents’ enthusiasm also helped him to be involved with the sport of karting from an early age.

Swimmer Michael Phelps started swimming when he was seven years old. At the age of 15, he placed fifth in the 200-meter butterfly stroke event at the 2000 Olympics, where he was the youngest male to compete in the games since 1932. Later Phelps became the youngest man ever to break a world record in swimming, at the age of 15 years and 9 months.

Swimmer Ian Thorpe came from a family of sportspersons. His father, Ken, was a promising cricketer and played in Sydney’s junior tournaments and once topped the season’s batting averages ahead of former Australian captain Bob Simpson. Thorpe’s mother Margaret was a good netball player.

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