5 Athletes Born into Extreme Poverty

If you assumed that most superstar athletes come from wealthy backgrounds, think again. To learn about five well-known athletes who had the misfortune of being born into extreme poverty, simply read on.

5 Athletes born into extreme poverty:

1. Le Bron James

Le Bron James has amassed millions of dollars as a result of his NBA career. However, James did not grow up with a silver spoon in his mouth and was sent to live with his elementary school football coach when he was 9 years old as his mother, who was a single parent couldn’t afford to support James.

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2. Jose Aldo

Jose Aldo is a professional mixed martial artist who fights in the UFC. Aldo’s childhood was particularly sad as he was born in one of Brazil’s infamous favelas. If you’re unfamiliar with the term favela, it translates roughly to slum. Worse yet, as a baby, Aldo was rolled onto a barbecue pit by one of his siblings, which left Aldo with permanent scarring, for which Aldo was bullied for during his school years.

3. Mike Tyson

To this day Mike Tyson is famous for being one of the most recognizable professional boxers in the world. So it may come as a surprise that Tyson came from a humble upbringing. In fact, when Tyson was just two years old his father abandoned his family, leaving Tyson’s mother as a single parent. As Tyson’s mother could not afford her rent on a single income, she was ultimately forced to move her young family to a notoriously dangerous neighborhood where crime was rife.

Sadly, as Tyson grew up around children and teens who committed crime on a regular basis, Tyson himself turned to robbery as a way to feed himself.

4. Knowshon Moreno

Knowshon Moreno has been lucky enough to make a name for himself as an NFL player, who has played for the Miami Dolphins. However, Moreno comes from humble beginnings and spent the first ten years of his life in homeless shelters with his dad. In fact, Moreno spent the first decade of his life surviving on and off the streets with his dad, until his grandmother decided to adopt Moreno when he turned 10 years old.

5. Diego Maradona

Diego Maradona is a soccer legend and is revered like a god in his home country of Argentina. However, Maradonna experienced extreme poverty as a child and had to share a tiny room with not one but seven siblings. As Maradona and his family lived in an extremely poor area close to Buenos Aires.

Thankfully Maradona was able to turn his life around by honing his soccer skills and playing for Argentina’s national soccer team. A feat which allowed Maradona to support his parents and seven siblings.

So if you assumed that in order to achieve greatness you have to come from a wealthy family, think again and be inspired by all five of the athletes mentioned above.