Bio
My name is Melissa Paniagua and I am a tennis player originally from Santa Cruz, Bolivia. I moved to the U.S. at 8 years old and started playing tennis at 7 years old. I am now currently 15 years old and my love for tennis is still the same as the day I started.
Career accomplishments:
- J30 Bolivia Doubles Semi-Finalist
- J30 Bolivia Singles Quarterfinalist
- J30 Jamaica Doubles Champion
- J30 Jamaica singles finalist
- J60 Jamaica doubles semi finalist
- J30 Guadeloupe doubles semifinalist
- ITF world ranking 1,381
- 697 National US Ranking
- 67 Florida Ranking
- 29 Regional Ranking
- Sponsored by Yonex and Adidas
- L4 Girls 14U Champion
- 3 time L5 16U Champion
- L4 18U 4th place
- L4 16U Consolation Finalist
- Battle of Boca Backdraw Champion
Q&A with Mia
My tennis heroes are Steffi Graf and Ash Barty
I first got involved in tennis in Bolivia because my mom saw that I had a lot of energy and thought I could use that energy on tennis.
My favorite part of the game is creativity that comes with hitting my shots.
I always use an agenda to plan my day because it brings order to my day with what I need to do whether that is tennis or school.
- 4:45 am Morning Run
- 7:00 am Mental and stretching
- 8:00 am – 10:00 am Morning practice
- 10:30 am – 11:30 am Fitness
- 11:15 am – 1:00 pm afternoon practice
- 1:30 pm – 2:00 pm stretching and recovery
.
Eggs and some form of protein for breakfast and sandwich or something light for lunch and for dinner some pasta or rice with chicken
I am a really big fan of getting iced coffee and reading books or some fitness
Everybody has a choice as to how they see things in life. It is all about perspective. Some people see the impossible and avoid it and some take on the challenge as a way to get better.
Winning my first ITF Title
Short term is to improve on my ability to step into shorter balls and longterm is to go pro.