Juventus defender Giorgio Chiellini and nine other sports stars who own university degrees

David Cooper - Writer 13:51 17/08/2017
The Shaq - a star on and off the court.

Thousands of students are receiving their A-level results up and down the UK on Thursday.

To mark the momentous day in the lives and careers for many young people, we’ve put a sporting spin on things.

Here, we look at 10 famous sports stars, from across various sports, who have studied at either college or university and gained a degree.

These 10 are clearly all-rounders when it comes to mixing education and sport.

An ex-England cricketer kicks us off…

ANDREW STRAUSS

The former England cricket captain studied at Hatfield College before attaining a 2:1 degree in economics from Durham University.

CHRISTINE OHURUOGU

Three years before winning a 400m gold medal for Great Britain at the Beijing Olympics, the 33-year-old graduated in linguistics in 2005 from the University College London.

SHAQUILLE O’NEAL

The American basketball legend was a student at Louisiana State University before pursuing his NBA career – and despite a few years away from the books – he returned in 2000 to complete his BA in general studies (after promising his mum he would.)

CHRIS HOY

The Scottish cyclist is one of the most celebrated athletes of all time having won six Olympic and 11 world championship gold medals. Away from the track, he studied a maths and physics degrees at the University of St Andrews.

VENUS WILLIAMS

The tennis legend and seven-time Grand Slam champion earned a BSc in Business Administration from Indiana University East in 2015.

GIORGIO CHIELLINI

Juventus star Giorgio Chiellini picked up his Masters degree in business administration from the University of Turin in April 2017.

SOCRATES

The legendary Brazil captain earned the nickname ‘Doctor Socrates’ given he is a qualified doctor and also owns a PHD degree in philosophy. Clever clogs.

MICHELLE KWAN

The most decorated American figure skater graduated from the University of Denver in 2009 with a bachelor’s degree in international studies and political science. Kwan also attained a masters qualification in international relations from Tufts University in 2011.

KATHERINE GRAINGER

The Olympic rowing star has a law degree from Edinburgh University and also studied medical law and medical ethics at Glasgow University.

DEMIAN MAIA

The UFC welterweight star is combining his time in the cage with journalism studies at university.

Recommended