From Rooney to Raducanu – the other teenage sensations Luke Littler is emulating
The 17-year-old claimed an historic place in the sport as he defeated Michael van Gerwen in the World Darts Championship final on Friday night.
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Your support makes all the difference.Luke Littler became the youngest darts world champion on Friday night as his amazing teenage dream continued.
The 17-year-old claimed an historic place in the sport as he defeated Michael van Gerwen 7-3 in the Alexandra Palace final, having fallen at the final hurdle a year ago.
Here, the PA news agency looks at some of sport’s other teenage prodigies in recent years.
Wayne Rooney – 16 years old
Though his breakthrough moment undoubtedly came when he scored past David Seaman from 30 yards in October 2002 to end champions Arsenal’s 30-game unbeaten Premier League run, Rooney had actually made his senior Everton debut two months earlier against Tottenham, setting up a goal for Mark Pembridge in a 2-2 draw.
England’s Euro 2004 opener against France in Portugal shot him to international stardom before he signed for Manchester United later that summer, going on to become all-time top scorer for both United (253) and for England (53), though his international tally has since been surpassed by Harry Kane.
Emma Raducanu – 18
Raducanu created one of the biggest stories in sport when she won the US Open in 2021. The then 18-year-old was playing just her third top-level tournament but made history by becoming the first person to come through qualifying and be victorious in New York. To make it even more mind-boggling, she did it without dropping a set.
She quickly became one of the most marketable sportspeople in the world and the big brands flocked to her but she has struggled since, with regular injuries derailing her chances of establishing herself on the tour.
Ronnie O’Sullivan – 17
O’Sullivan became the youngest-ever winner of a ranking event when, aged 17, he beat Stephen Hendry to claim the 1993 UK Snooker Championship. Two years later, he was victorious in the 1995 Masters to add another record to his CV by the age of 19, both accolades that he still holds.
Victory in the 2022 Snooker World Championship was his seventh, drawing him level with Hendry for most wins, and he has lived up to the excitement that accompanied his arrival onto the scene more than 30 years ago to become one of the sport’s all-time greats.
Sky Brown – 13
The skateboarder became the UK’s youngest-ever Olympian when she competed at the Tokyo games aged just 13 and followed it up by becoming the country’s youngest medal winner when she took bronze in the women’s park skateboarding event.
She has continued to set records in the years since, most recently by becoming the first British winner at the skateboarding World Championships in Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates in February 2023 and claiming another bronze at the Paris Olympics.
Cesc Fabregas – 16
Fabregas became Arsenal’s youngest-ever player when he made his first-team debut in a League Cup tie against Rotherham at Highbury in September 2003 and claimed another club record when he scored his first goal in the next round in a 5-1 win over Wolves.
It was the following season, though, that his true breakthrough arrived, taking up a regular place in the team’s midfield aged 17 at the start of the 2003/04 season as they sought to defend the title won the previous campaign. He went on to win two league titles with Chelsea as well as the 2010 World Cup and two European Championships with Spain.