Wonder Woman of the Week: Petra Kvitova

The Wonder Woman for this week is an international tennis champion with an Olympic bronze medal, a strong presence at any Grand Slam event, and a story of recovery from tragedy that heralds the title of "badass." Petra Kvitova is one of the top tennis players in the contemporary game- as evident from her records from the Olympics, Grand Slam events, and international tournaments. Kvitova reached her record highest placement in international standings in 2011 at second best in the world in the WTA and as of March 2018 Kvitova settled comfortably within the top ten.

Petra Kvitova reached early success in her career when she became the first tennis player of either gender born in the 90's to win at Wimbledon- signifying a new age for women's tennis. After her 2011 win, Kvitova would lead her home nation of Czech Republic to victory at the Fed Cup where she became a household name in her home country.

Kvitova had her worst season in 2015 coupled with a case of mononucleosis; an experience which caused the athlete to consider leaving her sport. Instead, Kvitova persisted and in the 2016 Rio Summer Olympics she earned her first Olympic medal. After her comeback, Kvitova was on track to continue to advance towards athletic glory, but fate threw another obstacle her way. During a home invasion, a burglary stabbed Kvitova with a knife in the hand. Kvitova survived the attack, but had to take a leave from tennis to recover, with the possibility of never returning to full strength.

Nevertheless, Kvitova persisted once again. With every update, the athlete considered simply the ability to wiggle her fingers as a miracle. Kvitova pushed through physical training and returned to international tennis to take the number 9 spot for best player in the WTA as of March 2018.