13-year-old Sask. tennis sensation smashes her way to 3rd national title

Janani Whitfield · CBC News

· Posted: May 11, 2025 7:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 1 infinitesimal ago

When Isabella Ruyu Yan grins, and you spot her braces and tiny stature, you mightiness deliberation of her arsenic cute oregon sweet. But erstwhile the 13-year-old steps onto the tennis court, there's nary mistaking her laser absorption and tendency to crush her opponents.

That steely determination has seen the young subordinate from Regina triumph 3 nationalist titles successful a row: U12 successful 2023, U14 successful 2024 and astir precocious the U16 nationalist rubric — toppling players 2 years older and bigger than her.

"It's ace insane that I won U16 nationals," Yan said after returning to her location tribunal astatine the Lakeshore Tennis Club. "I ne'er thought I could triumph nationals astatine the start, but the infinitesimal you triumph that past shot, it's amazing. I emotion the feeling of winning."

Asked if she gets intimidated by taking connected bigger competitors, she's unsure for a moment.

"Mostly radical are intimidated by maine due to the fact that I'm truly abbreviated and small," she says with a smile. 

Her manager and dada accidental there's nary 1 successful Saskatchewan, kid oregon adult, that tin springiness her the contention she needs

Yan's parents mightiness beryllium her biggest fans. Her dada Sam Zhou describes his girl arsenic "his small sweetheart," but besides marvels at her lethality connected the court.

"Every azygous clip she sees the shot coming, she wants to deed it hard," helium said.

Since Yan started playing astatine seven, Zhou has dedicated himself to helping his girl execute her potential, moving 2 jobs successful paratransit and trucking to assistance her with her grooming and question contention costs.

"You got to sacrifice, right?" helium said.

WATCH: Dad and girl stock emotion of tennis — and each other: 

Both of Yan's parents springiness recognition to her manager Marek Nehasil, saying she wouldn't beryllium wherever she is without him.

Nehasil said that portion determination are elements of the crippled Yan needs to enactment on, what she truly needs is to question internationally for competition. That would ideally get her immoderate International Tennis Federation (ITF) points to determination to a higher level of tournaments.

"She's a precise committed player.… Hopefully she tin enactment committed," Nehasil said.

Yan already has 1 sponsorship done sports marque Head (although she dreams of the eventual concern with Nike), but her begetter says adjacent smaller companies would payment from partnering with her now. 

"She is the one. In my mind, I ne'er uncertainty it," helium said. "This young lady, I warrant you, successful little than 3 years, you volition spot her connected nationalist TV."

And adjacent though successful tennis, emotion means zero — to this dada and daughter, emotion means everything. 

"If I didn't person him, I would evidently not beryllium successful the spot wherever I'm in. He's been there through my highs and lows," Yan said. "I'm truly grateful for him."  

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When describing the athletics of tennis, Yan compares it to utilizing a alert paddle. She gives her manus a swing, imagining holding a racket, and tries to deliberation of the close analogy.

"It's similar I americium sidesplitting a fly."