Noskova's father's harsh account: "We had nothing to eat or a place to live"

Fernando Murciego | 16 Jul 2026 | 11.30

The harsh story of Noskova's father: "We had nothing to eat or a place to live." Source: Getty

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The success of Linda Noskova in the world of tennis hides a story of uncommon perseverance. After conquering Wimbledon, her father, Drahoš Nosek, reflected on the enormous sacrifice the whole family made so that the Czech could become one of the best players on the circuit.

Watching his daughter lift the most prestigious trophy in tennis today, Nosek admits that he still finds it hard to grasp. He confesses that he never imagined living such a moment and recalls that from a very young age, coaches already noticed a different talent in her. As he explains, Linda always stood out for her ability to learn quickly and execute everything asked of her on the court without needing to repeat the instructions.

However, reaching the top was far from an easy path. The champion's father remembers that the family's beginnings were extremely tough. Both he and his wife had rebuilt their lives after divorcing their previous partners and started practically from scratch, with no assets and a very precarious economy.

"We barely started with anything to eat or a place to live," he recalled in an interview given to iSport.cz. At that time, he worked as a station chief, but the salary was not enough to support the family. He even collected scrap to earn additional income and cover the most basic expenses.

The situation only began to improve after the death of his parents, when the sale of a small inherited house allowed them to pay off debts and buy a car to start traveling to tournaments. Until then, they took advantage of his job that allowed him to travel by train, making real sacrifices to reduce costs.

The Sacrifices for Linda Noskova to Play Tennis

During those early years, the family made tennis their absolute priority. Nosek remembers traveling to Prague by train, and to save money, they even slept all four together in railway stations before tournaments. While other young promises were accompanied by families with financial resources, they tried to get by with the bare essentials.

The tennis player's father also recalls some episodes reflecting how far they were willing to go. One of them happened in the middle of winter when he spent several hours removing snow from a completely covered court so that Linda could train. After cleaning the playing field all morning, father and daughter had the only planned session of the day there. "In her entire life, she never said she didn't want to train," he proudly emphasizes.

The touching story of Linda Noskova's father: from sleeping in stations to conquering Wimbledon. Source: Getty

For Nosek, those five or six years were a total commitment from both parents to their daughter's sports future. He assures that both he and his wife gave one hundred percent of their efforts and acknowledges that he still gets emotional, especially recalling the role of Ivana, who passed away in 2024 after a long illness. The champion's father admits that losing his wife was one of the toughest moments of his life and that Linda's sporting growth was one of the reasons that helped him move forward.

The Coaches Who Shaped Noskova's Career

Nosek also wanted to acknowledge the work of those who helped shape his daughter's talent. He particularly highlighted the figure of Jaroslav Pavelka, the coach he considers responsible for her tennis education. He describes him as an old-school coach, very demanding and in favor of long training sessions, very different from current methodologies.

Later came the collaboration with Melanie Molitor, the mother of Martina Hingis. As he explains, although Pavelka built Linda's sporting foundation, Molitor taught the family the true meaning of professionalism. Punctuality, discipline, and absolute demand were non-negotiable in every training session.

Drahoš Nosek himself also acted as a coach during his daughter's early years. He even obtained the necessary certification to train her until she reached adolescence. However, he recalls with laughter the day he realized his time was up. Linda grabbed the racket with her left hand, despite being right-handed, and still managed to defeat him by a resounding 6-0. That result prompted a humorous reaction from her father, who broke the racket and jokingly told her he would no longer train her.

A Champion with Her Feet on the Ground

Beyond her sporting qualities, Nosek describes Linda as a very introverted, calm person who is difficult to emotionally disturb. He believes that this mental strength is one of the keys to her success and is convinced that the victory at Wimbledon will not change her personality.

The tennis player's father assures that his daughter keeps her feet on the ground and prefers not to make long-term plans for her sports career. He considers that injuries or unexpected changes can occur in sports and that the important thing is to keep moving forward step by step. For him, after all they have been through, the greatest reward is no longer the titles but being able to gather the whole family again and see that all those sacrifices turned into a success story.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, El duro relato del padre de Noskova: "No teníamos nada para comer ni dónde vivir"

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