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YoungMan and the Sea
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©CLIVEBRUNSSKILL/GETTY IMAGES,ON LOCATION AT SECRETS AURACOZUMEL; SWIMSUIT: VILEBREQUIN; T-SHIRT: ZADIG& VOLTAIRE;WATCH:RICHARDMILLE
SUMMER2013
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:
Nadal enjoys the seawhile not on the tennis court.
Secrets Aura Cozumel suites look out onto a serene lap pool.
COZUMEL
ismysecond
home; thesea is
asourceof joy.
“
”
theseamakes this, apart frombeinganeconomic invest-
ment, anemotional investment.”
Locatedjust12milesoMexico’sYucatanPeninsulaon
Cozumelisland,SecretsAuraCozumelboaststhe largest
beachfrontontheisland,whereguestscanswimuptotheir
contemporarysuitesvia lappools,orifyouareNadal,enjoy
thetwo-storyOceanViewSolarium&PoolSuite,complete
witharooftopinfinitypoolandincredibleoceanviews.“It’s
veryniceandclosetothebeachandthebestplaceintheworld
toscubadive,”Nadalsays.Snorkelingandscubadivingin
Cozumel’sworld-renownedcoralreefsarealsopopularisland
activities.Nadaladmitshewasscaredthefirsttimehewent
scubadiving.“Ihavehadgoodteachersandnowenjoyit.”
(Interestingly,headmitstoafearofthunder,dogs,spiders,and
motorcyclesaswell.Healsosleepswiththe lightson.)
Oneplaceheshowsno fear ison the tenniscourt.Nick-
named“TheKingofClay,”Nadal isregardedasoneof the
greatestclay-courtplayers, andhisrivalrywithRogerFe-
derer is theproverbial stuof legend.Simply, thestatistics
say itall—11GrandSlamsingles titles including theU.S.
Open,Wimbledon, and theFrenchOpen (hesetanall-time
recordofsevenat theOpen); thefirstSpaniard towin the
AustralianOpen;oneof just threeplayers toholdGrand
Slamsonclay, grass, andhardcourt; and in2008,hewona
GoldMedal in theBeijingOlympics.
Tennishasbeenaprimary focushisentire life,andonthe
court, the left-handedplayer focuseswithall the intensityof
aheat-seekingmissile.Pre-matchrituals includea freezing
coldshowerand listeningtomusiconhis iPod,whilegame
timeconcentration isaZen-like lesson insingle-mindedness.
“Whenonthetenniscourt,youarementally focusedonwhat
youaredoingcompletely.Youcannot loseyourconcentra-
tion inanyonemomentorthematchcango likethat,”he
explains, snappinghisfinger. “It’ssomethingtheplayers
know,andyouarealwaysvery focusedoneverymoment. It’s
whatIhavedonemywholecareer.”
Humility isoftenatraitnotassociatedwithsportsceleb-
rities,particularlyonewhoenjoyedaNo. 1rankingasthe
world’stopplayer foranumberofweeks in2010and2011.
ButNadal isknownasacompletelynormalguywhorarely
receivesnegativepressnorthrowstantrumsortennis
racquetsonthecourt.Hispopularityasan international
superstargoeshand inhandwiththe factthathe isoneofthe
sport’shottesthunks.Hisphotoshootwiththeentertain-
mentshow
Extra
was interruptedbywomenofallages
screaming fromthebalconiesofCozumel’sSecretsAura,
“Rafa,Rafa,Rafa!We loveyou!”(Sorry ladies,hehasbeen
involved forthepastsevenyearswithMariaFrancisca
Perello,whoworksattheRafaNadalFoundation.)
➤
