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Boris Becker

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Sports and games people

   CAPTION: Boris Becker

   Country            Flag of Germany  Germany
   Residence          Schwyz, Switzerland
   Date of birth      22 November 1967
   Place of birth     Leimen, Germany
   Height             1.90  m (6  ft 3  in)
   Weight             85  kg (187  lb)
   Turned Pro         1984
   Retired            30 June 1999
   Plays              Right
   Career Prize Money $25,080,956
                  Singles
   Career record:     713 - 214
   Career titles:     49
   Highest ranking:   1 ( 28 January 1991)
             Grand Slam results
   Australian Open    W (1991, '96)
   French Open        SF (1987, '89, '91)
   Wimbledon          W (1985, '86, '89)
   U.S. Open          W (1989)
                  Doubles
   Career record:     254 - 136
   Career titles:     15
   Highest ranking:   6 ( 22 September 1986)

   Infobox last updated on: N/A.
         Olympic medal record
             Men's Tennis
   Gold 1992 Barcelona Men's doubles

   Boris Franz Becker (b. November 22, 1967 in Leimen, Germany) is a
   former World No. 1 professional tennis player from Germany. He is a
   six-time Grand Slam singles champion, an Olympic gold medalist, and the
   youngest-ever winner of the men's singles title at Wimbledon at the age
   of 17. Since he retired from the professional tour, media work and
   colourful aspects of his personal life have kept him in the headlines.

Tennis career

   Becker is the only son of an architect, who built the tennis centre
   where Boris learned the game. Becker turned professional in 1984 and
   won his first professional doubles title that year in Munich.

   The orange-blond teenager took the sports world by storm in 1985. He
   won his first top-level singles title in June at Queen's Club and then,
   two weeks later, became the first unseeded player, the youngest-ever
   male, and the first German to win the Wimbledon singles title,
   defeating Kevin Curren in four sets. At the time, he was the
   youngest-ever male Grand Slam singles champion at 17 years, 7 months (a
   record broken by Michael Chang who won the French Open when he was 17
   years, 3 months). Two months after his triumph, Becker became the
   youngest winner of the Cincinnati Masters.

   In 1986, Becker successfully defended his Wimbledon title, defeating
   Ivan Lendl (world #1 at the time) in straight sets.

   Becker unexpectedly lost in the second round of Wimbledon in 1987. In
   the Davis Cup, Becker and John McEnroe played one of the longest
   matches in tennis history. Becker won 4-6, 15-13, 8-10, 6-2, 6-2 (at
   that time, there were no tiebreaks in the Davis Cup). The match lasted
   6 hours and 39 minutes.

   Becker was back in the Wimbledon final in 1988, where he lost in four
   sets to Stefan Edberg in a match that marked the start of one of
   Wimbledon's great rivalries. Becker also helped West Germany win its
   first Davis Cup in 1988. And he won the year-end Masters in New York,
   defeating five-time champion Lendl 5-7, 7-6, 3-6, 6-2, 7-6.

   1989 was possibly the pinnacle of Becker's career. He defeated Edberg
   in straight sets in the Wimbledon final and then beat Lendl in the U.S.
   Open. He also helped West Germany retain the Davis Cup, winning a long
   match in the quarterfinal round against Andre Agassi, 6-7, 6-7, 7-6,
   6-4, 6-4. The World No. 1 ranking, however, still eluded him.

   In 1990, Becker met Edberg for the third consecutive year in the
   Wimbledon final, losing a long five-set match.

   Becker reached the final of the Australian Open for the first time in
   his career in 1991, where he defeated Lendl to finally claim the World
   No. 1 ranking. He was ranked No. 1 for several weeks during 1991,
   though he never managed to finish a year ranked as the World's No. 1
   player.

   Becker reached his fourth consecutive Wimbledon final in 1991, where he
   unexpectedly lost in straight sets to his German compatriot Michael
   Stich. Becker and Stich developed a long-standing fierce rivalry, the
   media often pairing up the raw, passionate Becker against the
   level-headed, suave Stich. However, Becker and Stich teamed up in 1992
   to win the men's doubles gold medal at the Olympic Games in Barcelona.

   Becker defeated Jim Courier in straight sets to win the 1992 year-end
   ATP Tour World Championships, held then in Frankfurt, Germany.

   Becker reached the Wimbledon final for the seventh time in 1995, where
   he lost in four sets to Pete Sampras. He won the year-end ATP Tour
   World Championships in Frankfurt with a straight-set win over Michael
   Chang in the final.

   Becker's sixth and final Grand Slam title came in 1996, when he
   defeated Michael Chang in the final of the Australian Open. In that
   tournament, Becker delivered one of the funniest victory speeches in
   recent tennis history. When he listed his sponsors, he cut himself
   short saying that he did not have the whole day left. He then said that
   in prior years, when he was eliminated early, the organisation was so
   good that he really enjoyed watching the matches on TV. And he consoled
   losing finalist Chang by saying that his (Becker's) days were numbered,
   while Chang was still a young guy.

   Becker lost to Sampras in the final of the 1996 ATP Tour World
   Championships in Hannover, Germany, 3-6, 7-6, 7-6, 6-7, 6-4. Becker
   saved two match points in the fourth set and held serve 27 consecutive
   times until he was broken in the penultimate game. Sampras, who had
   lost to Becker a month earlier in a five-set final in Stuttgart, later
   called Becker the best indoor player he ever faced.

   In 1997, Becker also lost to Sampras in a quarterfinal at Wimbledon, in
   what many had thought would be Becker's final appearance there. In
   1999, however, he again played at Wimbledon, losing in the fourth round
   to Patrick Rafter.

   Becker was most comfortable playing on fast-playing surfaces,
   particularly indoor carpet (on which he won 26 titles) and grass
   courts. He reached a few finals playing on clay courts but never won a
   clay court tournament in his professional career. His best performances
   at the French Open were when he reached the semifinals in 1987, 1989,
   and 1991.

   Over the course of his career, Becker won 49 singles titles and 15
   doubles titles. Besides his six Grand Slam titles, he was also a
   singles winner in the year-end Tennis Masters Cup in 1988, 1992, and
   1995, and at the Grand Slam Cup in 1996. He won a record-equalling four
   singles titles at London's Queen's Club. In Davis Cup, his career
   win-loss record was 54-12, including 38-3 in singles. He also won the
   other two major international team titles playing for Germany – the
   Hopman Cup (in 1995) and the World Team Cup (in 1989 and '98).

   Becker won singles titles in 14 different countries: Australia,
   Austria, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, The
   Netherlands, Qatar, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, United States.

   In 2003, Becker was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of
   Fame.

   Becker occasionally plays on the senior tour and in World Team Tennis.
   He also commentates at Wimbledon for the BBC each year.

Grand Slam singles finals

Wins (6)

   Year Championship        Opponent in Final Score in Final
   1985 Wimbledon           / Kevin Curren    6-3, 6-7, 7-6, 6-4
   1986 Wimbledon (2)       Ivan Lendl        6-4, 6-3, 7-5
   1989 Wimbledon (3)       Stefan Edberg     6-0, 7-6, 6-4
   1989 U.S. Open           Ivan Lendl        7-6, 1-6, 6-3, 7-6
   1991 Australian Open     Ivan Lendl        1-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4
   1996 Australian Open (2) Michael Chang     6-2, 6-4, 2-6, 6-2

Runner-ups (4)

   Year Championship Opponent in Final Score in Final
   1988 Wimbledon    Stefan Edberg     4-6, 7-6, 6-4, 6-2
   1990 Wimbledon    Stefan Edberg     6-2, 6-2, 3-6, 3-6, 6-4
   1991 Wimbledon    Michael Stich     6-4, 7-6, 6-4
   1995 Wimbledon    Pete Sampras      6-7, 6-2, 6-4, 6-2

Grand Slam singles performance timeline

   Tournament 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995
   1996 1997 1998 1999 Career SR Career Win-Loss
   Australian Open QF 2R NH 4R A 4R QF W 3R 1R A 1R W 1R A A 2 / 11 29-9
   French Open A 2R QF SF 4R SF 1R SF A 2R A 3R A A A A 0 / 9 26-9
   Wimbledon 3R W W 2R F W F F QF SF SF F 3R QF A 4R 3 / 15 71-12
   US Open A 4R SF 4R 2R W SF 3R 4R 4R 1R SF A A A A 1 / 11 37-10
   SR 0 / 2 1 / 4 1 / 3 0 / 4 0 / 3 2 / 4 0 / 4 1 / 4 0 / 3 0 / 4 0 / 2 0
   / 4 1 / 2 0 / 2 0 / 0 0 / 1 6 / 46 N/A
   Annual Win-Loss 6-2 11-3 16-2 11-4 10-3 22-2 15-4 20-3 9-3 9-4 5-2 13-4
   9-1 4-2 0-0 3-1 N/A 163-40

   NH = tournament not held.

   A = did not participate in the tournament.

   SR = the ratio of the number of Grand Slam singles tournaments won to
   the number of those tournaments played.

Singles titles (49)

     * 1985 (3) - Wimbledon, Cincinnati, Queen's Club
     * 1986 (6) - Wimbledon, Canadian Open, Paris Indoor, Chicago, Sydney
       Indoor, Tokyo Indoor
     * 1987 (3) - Indian Wells, Milan, Queen's Club
     * 1988 (7) - Indian Wells, Masters*, Dallas WCT, Queen's Club,
       Stockholm, Tokyo Indoor, Indianapolis
     * 1989 (5) - Wimbledon, US Open, Paris Indoor, Milan, Philadelphia
     * 1990 (5) - Stockholm, Brussels, Stuttgart Indoor, Sydney Indoor,
       Indianapolis
     * 1991 (2) - Australian Open, Stockholm
     * 1992 (5) - ATP World Championship*, Paris Indoor, Basel, Brussels,
       Rotterdam
     * 1993 (2) - Doha, Milan
     * 1994 (4) - Stockholm, Los Angeles, Milan, New Haven
     * 1995 (2) - ATP World Championship*, Marseille
     * 1996 (5) - Australian Open, Stuttgart Indoor, Grand Slam Cup,
       Queen's Club, Vienna

   * - Year-End Championship Official Names: Before 1989 : Masters, 1990 -
   1999 : ATP World Championship

Doubles titles (15)

     * 1984 (1) - Munich
     * 1986 (2) - Sydney Indoor, Brussels
     * 1987 (3) - Frankfurt, Brussels, Milan
     * 1988 (2) - Indian Wells, Milan
     * 1989 (1) - Indian Wells
     * 1990 (1) - Indian Wells
     * 1992 (3) - Brussels, Barcelona Olympics, Monte Carlo
     * 1993 (1) - Doha
     * 1995 (1) - Milan

Playing style

   Becker's game was based on a huge serve that earned him the nicknames
   "Boom Boom" and "Baron von Slam." His penchant to throw himself at
   every shot with diving volleys endeared him to the crowds. His heavy
   forehand and powerful return of serve were also very significant
   factors in his game. For much of his career, Becker was the crown
   prince of the singles world rankings, spending long periods ranked as
   World No. 2, mostly behind Ivan Lendl and Stefan Edberg. He was ranked
   No. 1 for a total of 12 weeks.

   Becker was notorious for his frequent emotional outbreaks on court.
   Whenever he played badly, he would loudly swear at himself, and
   sometimes even smashed his rackets on court. However, in contrast to
   John McEnroe, he rarely showed aggression towards his opponents. His
   raw displays of emotions made him a crowd favourite. Becker's highly
   dramatic play spawned a plethora of new expressions, such as the Becker
   Blocker (his trademark early return shot), the Becker Hecht (his flying
   lunge), the Becker Faust ("Becker Fist"), the Becker Shuffle (the dance
   he sometimes performed after making important points) and Becker Säge
   ("Becker Saw" – referring to the way in which he famously pumped his
   fists in a sawing motion).

   Becker's high-power tennis made him one of the most dangerous lawn and
   hard court players, but he was notoriously ineffective on clay. He
   never won a top-level singles title on clay. Becker and Stich, however,
   won the men's doubles Olympic gold medal in 1992 on clay.

Personal life

   On December 17, 1993, Becker married the actress and designer Barbara
   Feltus, the daughter of an African American serviceman and a white
   German woman. A month later, their son Noah was born. He was named
   after Becker's friend Yannick Noah. Their second child, Elias, was born
   in September 1999. Before the marriage, they shocked Germans by posing
   nude for the cover of Stern (the picture was taken by her father).
   After the shock of their coupling faded, Boris and Barbara became the
   model for a New Germany. Becker gained the respect of his countrymen
   for his stance against racism and intolerance.

   However, all that changed when he asked Barbara for a separation.
   Becker claimed he merely wanted some time out. But she flew to Miami,
   Florida, USA a week later with Noah and Elias and filed a petition in
   Miami-Dade County Court, sidestepping their prenuptial agreement, which
   had entitled her to a single $2.5 million payoff. The January 2001
   pretrial hearing was broadcast live to Germany. Becker was granted a
   divorce on January 15, 2001. She got a $14.4 million settlement, their
   condo on the exclusive Fisher Island, and custody of Noah and Elias.

   On February 8, 2001, DNA test results forced Becker to admit paternity
   of a daughter, Anna (b. March 22, 2000), by Russian-African waitress
   Angela Ermakova. He at first denied paternity, and his lawyers
   suggested that Ermakova was part of a blackmail plot devised by the
   Russian Mafia. Nonetheless, in July 2001, he agreed to pay $5 million.
   As of April 2006, he was expressing huge joy from his relationship with
   this daughter.

   Becker was convicted of tax evasion on October 24, 2002, when he
   admitted that he lived in Germany from 1991–93 while claiming to reside
   in Monte Carlo. He was given two years probation, fined $500,000, and
   ordered to pay all court costs.

   Since October 2005, Becker has been a team captain on the British TV
   sports quiz show They Think It's All Over.

   Becker speaks with a distinctive lisp and the Heidelberg region
   intonation. He is notorious for saying regularly ääh, ääh. He has been
   constantly mocked by comedians for this.

   He is a fan of German football club Bayern Munich and serves on its
   advisory board together with, among others, Bavarian Minister-President
   Edmund Stoiber. He is also a fan of Chelsea FC.

   He is not related to Benjamin Becker, an ATP tour player who also comes
   from Germany and who defeated André Agassi at the 2006 U.S. Open,
   Agassi's final match as a tennis professional.

   Since retiring from the professional tour, Becker has lived in Schwyz
   in Switzerland.

In popular culture

     * His nickname in the German media is “Bobbele” (German baby talk for
       “Boris”).
     * The album title Nightfreak and the Sons of Becker by The Coral is a
       reference to him.
     * A large portion of the 1986 Italo disco hit " Geil" is about
       Becker, repeatedly stating that "Boris is geil (cool)" (the music
       video shows a picture of Becker, confirming the reference).
     * The Italian techno song "Balla Da Li" makes reference to several
       celebrities in succession, among them Boris Becker (the singer even
       follows his name with Becker's well-known ääh, ääh sound).

Books

   In 2003, Becker published a tell-all autobiography, Augenblick,
   verweile doch... (English title: The Player).
   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boris_Becker"
   This reference article is mainly selected from the English Wikipedia
   with only minor checks and changes (see www.wikipedia.org for details
   of authors and sources) and is available under the GNU Free
   Documentation License. See also our Disclaimer.
