LIGHTING IT UP
Meet the Wimbledon semi-finalist, 28, with lucrative side hustle she knew would succeed when she was just SIX years old
The Croatian has admitted that she thought about quitting tennis for good
DONNA VEKIC has lit up the women's singles draw at Wimbledon this year.
Which seems only fitting, given her passion for candles.
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The Croatian star, 28, has fought through the adversity of serious injuries to achieve her first ever semi-final run at a Grand Slam this year in SW19.
Popular big-hitter Vekic has earned more than $7.6million (£6m) in prize money during her tennis career.
While she has also turned her passion for candles into a successful business.
Vekic launched candle brand "DNNA" during Wimbledon three years ago.
Her candles, which can be bought in her native Croatia, are 100 per cent beeswax, and she has spoken about her desire to keep them "healthy".
She has also reiterated her desire to make a product that is popular because of its quality, and not just because it is tied to a tennis player.
Vekic said: "I wanted to create a brand that people would buy not because of me.
"I am hoping they will buy it because they love the brand and they love the product. I think in the future the whole marketing won’t be all about me."
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While she doesn't just want the marketing to be about her, she has done her brand no harm with her sensational run at Wimbledon this fortnight.
Vekic, whose father Igor is a former footballer, defeated Emma Raducanu's conqueror Lulu Sun earlier today 5-7 6-4 6-1 to reach the semi-finals - her best ever run at a Major.
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In addition to DNNA, Vekic also has her own clothing brand.
She wears her "Donna Sport" clothing on court - having split with Nike at the end of the 2022 season.
In her post-match press conference, she admitted that during her injury woes she nearly packed in tennis for good.
She said: "There was a couple of times in my career that I didn't want to play tennis any more. Most of you know that it was after my surgeries, but actually there was one recent one.
"It was the Thursday before Roland Garros this year that we had scheduled practice. I arrived to the club. I told Nick, Listen, I want to pull out of French Open. I want to go home. I want to take a longer break.
"I didn't have any energy, any motivation to keep practising, keep pushing because I felt like the last couple months I've given everything for tennis, and I wasn't getting the results that I kind of expected.
"It was a very, very tough moment, but they were all there for me. Like I said, that loss in Paris was so, so painful. But it motivated me again to keep working, to keep pushing.
'THINGS CAN TURN PRETTY FAST'
"It's crazy how in tennis things can turn so fast. One of my best friends, who was with me in Rome, I was talking to her before the match. I was like, Do you remember Rome after the match?
She was like, yeah, and now you're in the quarter-finals. Now I'm in the semi-finals. I think not just in tennis, in life things can turn pretty fast."
Vekic has built an excellent team around her, including former world No3 Pam Shriver.
But asked whether they helped her win today, she joked: "I told them to shut up five times during the match.
"Probably not. But it's also nice when I reach out to them, that I can reach out in case I need help. I know that they're always there."
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Vekic will next face either Jasmine Paolini or Emma Navarro in the Wimbledon semi-finals.
And she's bound to go into the match with a burning desire to advance to the final.
Wimbledon 2024 prize money
PRIZE MONEY for the 2024 Wimbledon Championships is a new record - and puts the grass-court Slam at the top of the tree.
The All England Club will dish out £50million across all the events - an increase of £5.3m and 11.9 per cent on last year, where singles champions Carlos Alcaraz and Marketa Vondrousova picked up £2.35m each.
However, the king and queen of grass this July will collect an extra £350,000 - taking the winner's earnings to £2.7m.
Here is the breakdown for the 2024 Wimbledon singles prize money:
- Winner: £2.7m
- Runner-up: £1.4m
- Semi-finalists: £715,000
- Quarter-finalists: £375,000
- Fourth round: £226,000
- Third round: £143,000
- Second round: £93,000
- First round: £60,000
- Overall total: £50m