The
International Tennis Federation (ITF) today announced the publication of its
official Olympic Book for Rio 2016: My Life, My Medal. One hundred and eighteen
Olympic and Paralympic tennis medallists took part in the project to help
promote the Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Tennis Events.
Tennis
returned as a full-medal sport at the Olympic Games at Seoul 1988, with the
first Paralympic Tennis Event held at Barcelona 1992. The 224-page publication
takes a look at the medallists from Seoul through London 2012, who share their
stories of how the Olympics and Paralympics affected their lives. The book also
shows the Olympians as they are today with original photography by 36
international photographers.
The book
opens with all-time great Stefanie Graf, of Germany, who won singles gold at Seoul
1988 to crown a memorable year that saw her achieve the Grand Slam. She is
joined by some of the game’s biggest stars of the last 30 years, including
Andre Agassi (USA), Boris Becker (GER), Lindsay Davenport (USA), Novak Djokovic
(SRB), Roger Federer (SUI), Justine Henin (BEL), Andy Murray (GBR), Rafael
Nadal (ESP), Arantxa Sanchez Vicario (ESP), Monica Seles (USA), and Serena and
Venus Williams (USA). Four-time singles gold medallist Esther Vergeer (NED),
Shingo Kunieda (JPN), Peter Norfolk (GBR) and founder of wheelchair tennis Brad
Parks (USA) are among the featured Paralympians.
ITF
President David Haggerty said: “My Life, My Medal was inspired by American Tim
Mayotte, who won a silver medal in Seoul, and who lists ‘Olympic medallist’ as
his top achievement on his Twitter page 28 years later. This made us want to
know how other tennis Olympians and Paralympians viewed theiachievement. This
book allows you to read in their own words how important the Olympics have
been, and continue to be, in their lives.”
Haggerty
added: “Tennis’s return to the Olympics was an important milestone in the
history of our sport. The Olympic effect has seen the number of ITF member
nations increase from 147 in 1988 to a record 211 nations today. This has
increased the number of nations competing at the highest level by about 40
percent.”
My Life, My
Medal follows in the footsteps of the highly successful ITF publications,
Aspire, Inspire and Journey to Beijing, that were produced for the last two
Olympic Tennis Events.
The 2016
Olympic Tennis Event will be held at the Olympic Tennis Centre in Barra Olympic
Park on 6-14 August, while the 2016 Paralympic Tennis Event will be held at the
same venue on 9-16 September.
A list of
the players included in the book is below.
Photographs
from the ITF Olympic Book are available to media. Please contact ITF
Communications for detai
Featured
Medallists (P = Paralympians)
Argentina:
Juan Martin del Potro, Javier Frana, Christian Miniussi, Gabriela Sabatini,
Paola Suarez, Patricia Tarabini
Australia:
Nicole Bradtke, Daniela Di Toro (P), David Hall (P), Rachel McQuillan, Alicia
Molik, Branka Pupovac (P), Elizabeth Smylie, Wendy Turnbull, Todd Woodbridge,
Mark Woodforde
Belarus:
Victoria Azarenka, Max Mirnyi, Natalia Zvereva
Belgium: Els
Callens, Justine Henin, Dominique Monami
Bulgaria:
Manuela MaleevaCanada: Sebastien Lareau, Daniel Nestor
Chile:
Fernando Gonzalez, Nicolas Massu
China, PR:
Li Ting, Sun Tian-Tian, Yan Zi, Zheng Jie
Croatia:
Mario Ancic, Goran Ivanisevic, Ivan Ljubicic, Goran Prpic
Czech
Republic: Andrea Hlavackova, Lucie Hradecka, Helena Sukova
France:
Julien Benneteau, Arnaud di Pasquale, Richard Gasquet, Stephane Houdet (P),
Michael Jeremiasz (P), Michael Llodra, Amelie Mauresmo, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga
Georgia:
Leila Meskhi
Great
Britain: Neil Broad, Tim Henman, Andy Murray, Laura Robson, Peter Norfolk (P)
India:
Leander Paes
Israel: Noam
Gershony (P)
Japan:
Shingo Kunieda (P)
Netherlands:
Kristie Boogert, Monique Kalkman (P), Miriam Oremans, Maaike Smit (P),
Chantal
Vandierendonck (P), Esther Vergeer (P)
Russia:
Andrei Cherkasov, Elena Dementieva, Yevgeny Kafelnikov, Maria Kirilenko, Nadia
Petrova, Dinara
Safina, Vera Zvonareva
Serbia:
Novak Djokovic
Slovakia:
Miloslav Mecir
South
Africa: Wayne Ferreira, Piet Norval
Spain: Jordi
Arrese, Sergi Bruguera, Sergio Casal, Alex Corretja, Albert Costa, Anabel
Medina Garrigues, Conchita Martinez, Rafael Nadal, Virginia Ruano Pascual,
Emilio Sanchez, Arantxa Sanchez Vicario
Sweden:
Simon Aspelin, Stefan Edberg, Anders Jarryd, Thomas Johansson
Switzerland:
Roger Federer, Marc Rosset, Stan Wawrinka
USA: Andre
Agassi, Bob Bryan, Mike Bryan, Lindsay Davenport, Gigi Fernandez, Mary Joe
Fernandez, Ken Flach, Zina Garrison, Brad Gilbert, Tim Mayotte, Brad Parks (P),
Lisa Raymond, Robert Seguso, Monica Seles, Pam Shriver, Nick Taylor (P), David
Wagner (P), Serena Williams, Venus Williams
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