Arantxa Sánchez Vicario
Arantxa Sánchez Vicario is a Spanish former world No. 1 retired tennis player. She won 14 Grand Slam titles: four in singles, six in women's doubles, and four in mixed doubles. In 1994, she was crowned the ITF World Champion for the year.
Arantxa Sánchez Vicario started playing tennis at the age of four, when she followed her older brothers Emilio Sánchez and Javier Sánchez (both of whom became professional players) to the court and hit balls against the wall with her first racquet. As a 17-year-old, she became the youngest winner of the women's singles title at the 1989 French Open, defeating World No. 1 Steffi Graf in the final.
She won six women's doubles Grand Slam titles, including the US Open in 1993 (with Helena Suková) and Wimbledon in 1995 (with Jana Novotna). She also won four Grand Slam mixed doubles titles. In 1991, she helped Spain win its first-ever Fed Cup title, and helped Spain win the Fed Cup in 1993, 1994, 1995, and 1998. Sánchez Vicario holds the records for the most matches won by a player in Fed Cup competition (72) and for most ties played (58).
Sánchez Vicario was a member of the Spanish teams that won the Hopman Cup in 1990 and 2002.
Over the course of her career, Sánchez Vicario won 29 singles titles and 69 doubles titles before retiring in November 2002. She came out of retirement in 2004 to play doubles in a few select tournaments as well as the Athens 2004: Games of the XXVIII Olympiad (2004), where she became the only tennis player to play in five Olympics in the Games history. Sanchez Vicario is the most decorated Olympian in Spanish history with four medals - two silver and two bronze.
In 2007, she was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame. She was only the third Spanish player (and the first Spanish woman) to be inducted.
Arantxa Sánchez Vicario started playing tennis at the age of four, when she followed her older brothers Emilio Sánchez and Javier Sánchez (both of whom became professional players) to the court and hit balls against the wall with her first racquet. As a 17-year-old, she became the youngest winner of the women's singles title at the 1989 French Open, defeating World No. 1 Steffi Graf in the final.
She won six women's doubles Grand Slam titles, including the US Open in 1993 (with Helena Suková) and Wimbledon in 1995 (with Jana Novotna). She also won four Grand Slam mixed doubles titles. In 1991, she helped Spain win its first-ever Fed Cup title, and helped Spain win the Fed Cup in 1993, 1994, 1995, and 1998. Sánchez Vicario holds the records for the most matches won by a player in Fed Cup competition (72) and for most ties played (58).
Sánchez Vicario was a member of the Spanish teams that won the Hopman Cup in 1990 and 2002.
Over the course of her career, Sánchez Vicario won 29 singles titles and 69 doubles titles before retiring in November 2002. She came out of retirement in 2004 to play doubles in a few select tournaments as well as the Athens 2004: Games of the XXVIII Olympiad (2004), where she became the only tennis player to play in five Olympics in the Games history. Sanchez Vicario is the most decorated Olympian in Spanish history with four medals - two silver and two bronze.
In 2007, she was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame. She was only the third Spanish player (and the first Spanish woman) to be inducted.
