Boris Becker Biography - Young Champion, Ups And Downs, Controversy Finds The Wunderkind, Chronology, Awards And Accomplishments
player grand german playing
1967-
German tennis player
In 1985, Boris Becker became the youngest player to win the men's singles championship at Wimbledon. He
Boris Becker
was also the first German to do so, and the first unranked player. In truth, Becker was used to being the youngest. He had started playing when he was only eight years old, and by age 11 he was playing in adult divisions. Still, it was a grand moment, and turned Becker into an international sensation, and a national hero. While Becker continued to find success on the court, winning four more Grand Slam tournaments and an Olympic gold medal, he also weathered difficult slumps and at times found himself the object of controversy and contempt. Through it all, however, he has remained Germany's most famous athlete, and a symbol of grace and good manners in a sport that has not always been known for either.
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Boris Becker was born in Liemen, West Germany, to Karl-Heinz and Elvira Becker. His father, an architect, saw an early promise in his son and was active in constructing a tennis center near their home. Young Boris began playing competitively at the age of 8. Actually, Boris was not the best boy at the center, and at one point he was relegated to hitting with the girls, including a young Steffi Gra…
In 1986, Becker successfully defended his title against Ivan Lendl, efficiently knocking him off in three sets: 6-4, 6-3, 7-5. "I saw a little bit in Ivan's face that he didn't know what to do with me," Becker told a Sports Illustrated reporter. At that point, reporters could still write that no mortal man could beat Becker, who had only lost his first Wimbledon competi…
Having regained his championship status, Becker seemed to gain a newfound confidence. To replace Bosch he hired an unknown Australian named Bob Brett, saying he was not interested in finding another mentor or father figure. He also began speaking out more to the press about public issues, saying that the West German government was spending too much on armaments and not enough on the homeless, and …
The new millennium has not been very kind to Boris Becker. In late 2000, his marriage fell apart in a very public way, just as Germans had grown to accept, and even admire it. After the outcry in the late 1990s, Boris and Barbara had emerged as a glamour couple, a visible symbol of tolerance and racial accord in a country sometimes plagued by racist violence. But in November of 2000, Becker told h…
"Becker visits illegitimate daughter for first time." Europe Intelligence Wire (October 29, 2002) "Boris made it a Boom town." Sports Illustrated (July 22, 1985): 20. Chapman, Doug. "Boris Becker's hopes end with injured wrist." Knigh Ridder/Tribune News Service (June 28, 1996): 628. Chapman, Doug. "Boris Becker announces his last match at Wi…
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