Cameron Anthony Park

Was it too much too young?

Justine Henin announced today that she was retiring from professional tennis effective immediately. She is 25 years old.

I don’t have to go over Henin’s credentials here but know that she is quite possibly the best female tennis player to have graced the WTA tour since the peak of Steffi Graf’s career.

My mom’s favorite golfer also to retire after this year.

In a loosely related story, 37 year old Annika Sorenstam also announced her retirement from the sport of golf. Although 37 may not be close to a rookie’s age in the world of professional sports, it’s certainly not an age one would assume to retire at especially when said professional is considered by many as the best of all time.

More interesting is that both Henin and Sorenstam cite loss of passion and wear and tear as the main reason to walk away from their respected professions. In the case of Henin, she is literally leaving as the number one ranked player in the world (Sorenstam is currently the number 2 ranked player in the LPGA money list for 2008).

Neither have any known reported injuries.

“One of the things he said (Brett Favre on his retirement) was that he loved the competition but not the daily grind… I feel the same way.” — Annika Sorenstam

“I always based everything on this motivation—this flame—that was in me. And once I lost that, I lost many, many things,” — Justine Henin

So what’s going on with these young athletes that’s taking the joy out of the game for them?

Is there too much pressure on them? By whom?

Are their respective games getting too advanced?

Are up and coming opponents turning into a different breed of competition that can’t be overcome by these super athlete ladies?

Is the training taking too much from their bodies?

What do you think?

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