Pete Sampras

Pete Sampras was born on August 12, 1971 in Washington, D.C., the third of four children. His parents, Soterios (known as Sam) and Georgia (Vroustrous) Sampras, are of Greek descent. Sampras spent his first years in Potomac, Maryland, where his father worked as a civil aerospace engineer for the U.S. Air Force. His father took a job in the aviation industry when Sampras was seven and the family moved to Rancho Palos Verdes, California.

After moving to the warmer climate, Sampras, along with his brother Gus and two sisters, Stella and Marion, decided to take up tennis. The family joined the Peninsula Racquet Club where the Sampras children began taking lessons. Sampras, whose previous tennis experience amounted to hitting a ball against the basement wall and knocking about on the local D.C. high school courts, took to the game quickly. When he was eight his parents, who knew little about the game, invited Peter Fischer, a pediatrician and tennis buff, to begin coaching their son. Although Fischer was inexperienced and un-salaried, he understood the game, and taught Sampras strategy. By the time he was twelve, Sampras was playing up in the 14-year-old division and winning.

When Sampras was fourteen Fischer insisted that he shift from being a baseline player to serve-and-volley player. He also convinced Sampras to change from a two-handed to a one-handed backhand. Although other professionals were brought in to help Sampras with his game, Fischer is credited with improving Sampras's monster serve. During practice, Sampras would begin his serve and only after the ball was released from his hand did Fischer call out where he wanted Sampras to place it. The drill taught Sampras to disguise his serving motion so that his opponent has no idea where the ball is going to land. Fischer, who was often more critical than sympathetic after his young student lost a match, constantly raised the bar of expectations, reminding Sampras that his competition was legendary Australian tennis player Rod Laver, Sampras's lifelong role model.