József Asbóth
| Country (sports) |  Hungary |
|---|---|
| Born | 18 September 1917 Szombathely, Austria-Hungary |
| Died | 22 September 1986 (aged 69) München, West Germany |
| Turned pro | 1939 (amateur tour) |
| Retired | 1957 |
| Plays | Right-handed (one-handed backhand) |
| Singles | |
| Highest ranking | No. 8 (1948, John Olliff)[1] |
| Grand Slam singles results | |
| French Open | W (1947) |
| Wimbledon | SF (1948) |
| Mixed doubles | |
| Grand Slam mixed doubles results | |
| French Open | SF (1947) |
József Asbóth (Hungarian: [ˈjoːʒɛf ˈɒʒboːt]; 18 September 1917 – 22 September 1986) was a Hungarian male tennis player. Born in a family of railway workers,[2] he is best remembered for being the first Hungarian tennis and the first player from Eastern Europe to win a Grand Slam singles title, at the 1947 French Open (where as fifth seed he beat Yvon Petra, Tom Brown and Eric Sturgess).[3] As of today, he is still the only Hungarian male player who won a Grand Slam title in singles. Asboth was a clay court specialist who was good at keeping the ball in play.[4] Asbóth also reached the semifinals at Wimbledon in 1948 (beating Sturgess and Brown, then losing to John Bromwich).[5] Hungary's Communist government had let him leave the country only after the personal warrant of the Swedish King Gustaf V that Asbóth would return to his homeland and wasn't going to emigrate.[2] In 1941, he was a member of the Hungarian team that won the Central European Cup. Asbóth was ranked World No. 8 by John Olliff of The Daily Telegraph in 1948 (and No. 9 in 1947).[1]
His Davis Cup record was 24 wins and 17 losses and he won the Hungarian National Tennis Championships 13 times.[6]
After his career, he became responsible for the next generation of tennis players at the Belgian Tennis Federation. He later became a trainer in Munich.
In 1993 a street was named after Asbóth in Szombathely, the city where he was born.[7]
Grand Slam finals
Singles (1 title)
| Outcome | Year | Championship | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | 1947 | French Championships | Clay |  Eric Sturgess |
8–6, 7–5, 6–4 |
References
- ^ a b United States Lawn Tennis Association (1972). Official Encyclopedia of Tennis (First Edition), p. 426.
- ^ a b Lass, Gábor (2011-06-29). "A magyar tenisz végvára" [Last resort of Hungarian tennis]. demokrata.hu (in Hungarian). Budapest, Hungary: Magyar Demokrata. Archived from the original on 2013-07-28. Retrieved 2012-02-01.
- ^ "French Open 1947". www.tennis.co.nf.
- ^ "Jozsef Asboth". www.tennis.co.nf.
- ^ "Wimbledon 1948". www.tennis.co.nf.
- ^ Árvay, Sándor (2009-01-05). "Bajnokaink" [Our champions] (in Hungarian). Budapest, Hungary: Magyar Tenisz Szövetség [Hungarian Tennis Association]. Archived from the original on October 16, 2012. Retrieved December 7, 2010.
- ^ "Asbóth József" (in Hungarian). Webpage of the city of Szombathely, Hungary. Archived from the original on 2007-12-09. Retrieved 2008-03-02.
External links
- József Asbóth at the Association of Tennis Professionals
- József Asbóth at the International Tennis Federation
- József Asbóth at the Davis Cup
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