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Esther Vergeer

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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Pierricbross (talk | contribs) at 10:59, 28 January 2012 (→‎Grand Slam doubles: doubles at the australian open was held those years. have no idea whether or not vergeer played it but seems doubtful. di toro won both years.). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Esther Vergeer
Full nameEsther Mary Vergeer
Country (sports) Netherlands
ResidenceWoerden, The Netherlands
Born (1981-07-18) July 18, 1981 (age 43)
Woerden, The Netherlands
Turned pro1995
PlaysRight Handed
Official websitewww.esthervergeer.nl
Singles
Career record656–25
Highest rankingNo. 1 (6 April 1999)
Current rankingNo. 1
Grand Slam singles results
Australian OpenW (2002-4, 2006-9, 2011)
French OpenW (2007-11)
US OpenW (2005-7, 2009-11)
Other tournaments
MastersW (1998-2011)
Paralympic Games Gold Medal (2000, 2004, 2008)
Doubles
Career record426–32
Highest rankingNo. 1 (20 October 1998)
Current rankingNo. 3
Grand Slam doubles results
Australian OpenW (2004, 2006-9, 2011)
French OpenW (2007-9, 2011)
WimbledonW (2009-11)
US OpenW (2005-7, 2009-11)
Other doubles tournaments
Masters DoublesW (2001-3, 2005-9, 2011)
Paralympic Games Gold Medal (2000, 2004)
World Team Cup Champion (1998, 2000-09)
Medal record
Representing  Netherlands
Women's wheelchair tennis
Paralympic Games
Gold medal – first place 2000 Sydney Women's singles
Gold medal – first place 2000 Sydney Women's doubles
Gold medal – first place 2004 Athens Women's singles
Gold medal – first place 2004 Athens Women's doubles
Gold medal – first place 2008 Beijing Women's singles
Silver medal – second place 2008 Beijing Women's doubles
Last updated on: 9 December 2011.

Esther Vergeer (born 18 July 1981, Woerden) is a Dutch wheelchair tennis player. Combining singles and doubles, she has won 39 Grand Slams, 22 year-end championships and 5 Paralympics titles. Vergeer has been the world number one wheel chair tennis player since 1999. In singles, she has not been beaten since January 2003 and is on a winning streak of 434 matches. She is often mentioned as the most dominant player in professional sports.[1][2]

Early life and career

Vergeer developed paraplegia when she was 8 years old due to an otherwise successful, very risky surgery concerning hemorrhaging blood vessels around her spinal cord.[3] During rehabilitation she learned to play volleyball, basketball, and tennis in a wheelchair. After playing basketball for several years at club level, she was invited to join the national wheelchair basketball team. She played with the Dutch team that won the European championship in 1997.

Vergeer had started playing tennis in parallel with basketball, playing her first international tournament in 1996, and switched to full-time tennis in 1998. Coached by Marc Kalkman, her first big win was at the US Open championships in 1998, moving her from 15th to 2nd in the world ranking. She beat top seed Daniela Di Toro to win the singles title and partnered with Sonja Peters to capture the doubles.[4] Her success led to a photo in the 26 November 1998 TennisWeek issue [5] She continued on and during the 2000 Summer Paralympics in Sydney she did not lose a set to win the gold medal in singles and also won the doubles title with Maaike Smit as her partner. She also won the Wheelchair Tennis masters in 1998.[6]

Wins and accolades

As of 6 November 2011, Vergeer has won 153 singles and 130 doubles titles at international tournaments. Her overall record is 656 wins and 25 losses in singles, and 426 wins and 32 losses in doubles.[7] In singles, she has won 19 Grand Slam, 13 year-end championship, and 3 Paralympic titles while in doubles she has shared 19 Grand Slam, 9 year-end, and 2 Paralympic titles. She has also been part of the Dutch team that has won 14 World Team Cups.

Since 31 March 2001 Vergeer has lost only one singles match (on 30 Jan 2003 at the Sydney International to Daniela Di Toro from Australia). Between August 2004 and October 2006 she even won 250 consecutive sets, only one of which ended with a tiebreaker. Vergeer is currently on a 434-match winning streak.[8][9][10][11]

She has been nominated five times[12] for the Laureus Award for Sportsperson with a Disability of the Year, winning it twice in 2002 and 2008.

In October 2010 she posed nude for ESPN The Magazine's annual Body Issue, marking the first time the magazine has featured a disabled athlete in the Body Issue.[13][14]

In December 2010 Esther Vergeer was featured on CNN for her tennis record of 401 straight wins receiving congratulations from both Roger Federer and Kim Clijsters.[11]

Major titles

Grand Slam singles finals: 19 (19 titles)

Outcome Year Championship Surface Opponent in the final Score in the final
Winner 2002 Wheelchair Classic 8's at Australian Open (1) Hard Australia Daniela di Toro 6–2, 6–0
Winner 2003 Wheelchair Classic 8's at Australian Open (2) Hard Australia Daniela di Toro 2–6, 6–0, 6–3
Winner 2004 Wheelchair Classic 8's at Australian Open (3) Hard Australia Daniela di Toro 4–6, 6–3, 6–1
Winner 2005 US Open (1) Hard Netherlands Korie Homan 6–2, 6–1
Winner 2006 Wheelchair Classic 8's at Australian Open (4) Hard Netherlands Jiske Griffioen 6–4, 6–0
Winner 2006 US Open (2) Hard Netherlands Sharon Walraven 6–1, 6–2
Winner 2007 Australian Open (5) Hard France Florence Gravellier 6–1, 6–0
Winner 2007 French Open (1) Clay France Florence Gravellier 6–3, 5–7, 6–2
Winner 2007 US Open (3) Hard France Florence Gravellier 6–3, 6–1
Winner 2008 Australian Open (6) Hard Netherlands Korie Homan 6–3, 6–3
Winner 2008 French Open (2) Clay Netherlands Korie Homan 6–2, 6–2
Winner 2009 Australian Open (7) Hard Netherlands Korie Homan 6–4, 6–2
Winner 2009 French Open (3) Clay Netherlands Korie Homan 6–2, 7–5
Winner 2009 US Open (4) Hard Netherlands Korie Homan 6–0, 6–0
Winner 2010 French Open (4) Clay Netherlands Sharon Walraven 6–0, 6–0
Winner 2010 US Open(5) Hard Australia Daniela di Toro 6–0, 6–0
Winner 2011 Australian Open (8) Hard Australia Daniela di Toro 6–0, 6–0
Winner 2011 French Open (5) Clay Netherlands Marjolein Buis 6–0, 6–2
Winner 2011 US Open (6) Hard Netherlands Aniek van Koot 6–2, 6–1

Grand Slam singles

Tournament 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Grand Slam Tournaments wheelchair singles
Australian Open W W W A W W W W A W
French Open NH NH NH NH NH W W W W W
US Open NH NH NH W W W NH W W W

Grand Slam doubles

Tournament 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Grand Slam Tournaments wheelchair doubles
Australian Open A A W A W W W W A W
French Open NH NH NH NH NH W W W F W
Wimbledon NH NH NH NH NH NH NH W W W
US Open NH NH NH W W W NH W W W

Wheelchair Tennis Masters and Paralympic games

Tournament 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 Career SR Career W-L Career Win %
Wheelchair Tennis Masters
WTM Singles W W W W W W W W W W W W W W 14 / 14 100%
WTM Doubles NH NH F W W W LQ W W W W W - W 9 / 12 75%
Paralympic games
Singles - - W - - - W - - - W - - - 3 / 3 100%
Doubles - - W - - - W - - - F - - - 2 / 3 66%

Template:Performance timeline legend

References

  1. ^ Esther Vergeer is the World's Most Dominant Athlete, bleacherreport.com, 27 July 2008
  2. ^ A Champ Has Rivals, but No Equals, The New York Times, 11 September 2010
  3. ^ Biography 1981 – 1990 (Dutch) www.esthervergeer.nl
  4. ^ ITF Profile of Esther Vergeer
  5. ^ Esther Vergeer, 10sballs.com, 18 November 2010
  6. ^ Wheelchair Tennis Masters 1994–1998, ITF tennis, 2011
  7. ^ ITF profile
  8. ^ Kunieda and Vergeer win third Roland Garros titles, ITF tennis, 5 June 2009
  9. ^ Esther Vergeer runs win streak to 376 at U.S. Open's women's wheelchair competition, NY Daily News, 11 September 2009
  10. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/disability_sport/9213076.stm
  11. ^ a b 401 matches undefeated, CNN, 31 December 2010
  12. ^ Laureus World Sports Awards Press Release, 24 January 2008
  13. ^ Esther Vergeer Poses Naked in Her Wheelchair for ESPN, The Spin, 7 October 2010
  14. ^ Wheelchair ace bares body and soul, CNN, 3 November 2010
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Esther Vergeer.
Awards
Preceded by ITF Wheelchair Tennis World Champion
2000–2011 		Succeeded by
Incumbent
Preceded by
First Award
 Female Player of the Year
2001–2003 		Succeeded by
Australia Daniela di Toro
Preceded by Laureus World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability
2002
2008 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
First award
Australia Jiske Griffioen
 Year End Number 1 – Doubles Award
2003–2004
2007–2008 (with Australia Griffioen) 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Dutch Disabled Sportsman / woman of the Year
2002, 2003
2005
2008
2010 		Succeeded by

Template:Persondata

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