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Ilana Kloss

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Ilana Sheryl Kloss
Born (1956-03-22) 22 March 1956 (age 68)
Johannesburg, South Africa
Spouse
​
​
(m. 2018)​
Tennis career
Turned pro1973
PlaysLeft-handed
Singles
Highest rankingNo. 19 (1979)
Grand Slam singles results
French Open2R (1976, 1979)
Wimbledon3R (1975, 1976, 1978)
US Open3R (1973, 1978)
Doubles
Career record2–4
Career titles19
Grand Slam doubles results
Australian OpenQF (1983)
French OpenSF (1976, 1979)
WimbledonSF (1976)
US OpenW (1976)
Grand Slam mixed doubles results
French OpenW (1976)
Medal record
Maccabiah Games
Gold medal – first place 1973 Tel Aviv Women's singles
Gold medal – first place 1973 Tel Aviv Women's doubles
Gold medal – first place 1973 Tel Aviv Mixed doubles
Silver medal – second place 1977 Tel Aviv Mixed doubles

Ilana Sheryl Kloss (born 22 March 1956) is a South African former professional tennis player, tennis coach, and administrator. She was the World's No. 1 ranked doubles player in 1976, and World No. 19 in singles in 1979.[1] She won the Wimbledon juniors singles title in 1972, the US Open juniors singles title in 1974, and the US Open Doubles and French Open Mixed Doubles titles in 1976. She won three gold medals at the 1973 Maccabiah Games in Israel. After her playing career, Kloss was the commissioner of World TeamTennis from 2001–2021.[2]

Tennis career

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Before turning professional, Kloss won the juniors singles title at Wimbledon in 1972.[3] She won the SA doubles title with Linky Boshoff in 1973, 1975, and 1977.[4]

She also played in the Maccabiah Games in Israel, winning gold medals in the singles, women's doubles (with Helen Weiner defeating silver medalists Vicki Berner and Pam Gullish of Canada in the finals), and the mixed doubles in the 1973 Maccabiah Games.[5] She also won a silver medal in mixed doubles in the 1977 Maccabiah Games, losing to Peter Rennert and Stacy Margolin.[6][7][8][9]

In 1974, she won the US Open juniors singles title.[1] She was the youngest No. 1 player in South African history.[10][11] In 1973, she won the title in Cincinnati with Pat Walkden, defeating Evonne Goolagong and Janet Young in the final.

Kloss was ranked No. 1 in the world in doubles and No. 19 in singles in 1976. That year, she won doubles titles at the US Open, the Italian Open, the US Clay Courts, the German Open, the British Hard Courts Championship, and Hilton Head, as well as the mixed doubles title at the French Open.[11] Linky Boshoff was her most frequent doubles partner.[11] In 1977 she won the Canadian and German championships and the British clay court championship.[11]

In 1999, Kloss won the US Open doubles and mixed doubles championship on the 35-and-over tour.[11]

Kloss was inducted into the US National Jewish Sports Hall of Fame in 2006. She was inducted into the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame in 2010.[1][12][13]

Federation Cup

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From 1973 until 1977, Kloss was a member of the South African team that competed in the Federation Cup. She compiled a 12–5 win–loss record.[14]

World Team Tennis

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Kloss joined the San Francisco Golden Gaters WTT team in 1974,[15] and reached the WTT Finals with the team in 1975.[16] She left the Golden Gaters prior to the 1976 season to team in order to fully participate in clay-court tournaments in Europe which conflicted with the WTT schedule.[17] Kloss returned to the Golden Gaters for the 1978 season. In 1983, she coached the Chicago Fyre to a WTT Championship and was named Coach of the Year. In 1985, Kloss was a player and coach for the Miami Beach Breakers, and became vice-president of WTT in 1987 and executive director in 1991. Since 2001, she has been the chief executive officer and commissioner of World Team Tennis.[2]

Grand Slam tournament finals

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Women's doubles: 1 (1 title)

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Result Year Championship Surface Partner Opponents Score
Win 1976 US Open Clay South Africa Linky Boshoff Soviet Union Olga Morozova
United Kingdom Virginia Wade		 6–1, 6–4

Mixed doubles: 1 (1 title)

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Result Year Championship Surface Partner Opponents Score
Win 1976 French Open Clay Australia Kim Warwick South Africa Linky Boshoff
Rhodesia Colin Dowdeswell		 5–7, 7–6, 6–2

Post-tennis career

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Kloss and her spouse Billie Jean King became minority owners of the Los Angeles Dodgers baseball team in September 2018[18] - so Kloss has two World Series championships to her credit (2020 and 2024).[19] - and Angel City FC, a Los Angeles–based team that began play in the National Women's Soccer League in 2022.[20]

Kloss, along with King, is a member of the Advisory Board of the Professional Women's Hockey League, which was formed in 2023.[21] The MVP award for the PWHL playoffs was named the Ilana Kloss Playoff MVP award, first awarded to Minnesota forward Taylor Heise.

Personal life

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Kloss was born in Johannesburg, South Africa.

On October 18, 2018, Kloss married American tennis player Billie Jean King.[22] The ceremony was performed by former New York City Mayor David Dinkins. King and Kloss had been together for over 40 years as of 2021.[23]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c "Ilana Kloss". www.jewishsports.net.
  2. ^ a b "Ilana Kloss". WTT.
  3. ^ Greenberg, Martin Harry (21 September 1979). "The Jewish lists : physicists and generals, actors and writers, and hundreds of other lists of accomplished Jews". New York: Schocken Books – via Internet Archive.
  4. ^ "Jewish Affairs". Jewish Board of Deputies. 21 September 1986.
  5. ^ "Spitz'sFeat Is Bettered At Tel Aviv". The New York Times. 16 July 1973.
  6. ^ "Israel Basketball Team Loses out to Underdog U.S. Squad at 10th Maccabiah". 20 March 2015.
  7. ^ "At the Maccabiah Games: U.S. Wins the Most Medals with 246; Israel Comes in Second with 217". 26 July 1985.
  8. ^ "Israel Basketball Team Loses out to Underdog U.S. Squad at 10th Maccabiah". 22 July 1977.
  9. ^ "Seeking Jewish Tennis Players to Represent the United States | Adults-Seniors – USTA Florida". Usatennisflorida.usta.com. 22 September 2008. Archived from the original on 5 January 2013. Retrieved 11 February 2011.
  10. ^ "US Open junior champions". Archived from the original on 11 July 2011. Retrieved 24 February 2011.
  11. ^ a b c d e "Kloss, Ilana". Jews in Sports. Retrieved 5 February 2014.
  12. ^ Wechsler, Bob (21 September 2008). Day by Day in Jewish Sports History. KTAV Publishing House, Inc. ISBN 9781602800137.
  13. ^ "'The Greatest Jewish Tennis Players of All Time' Book Released". World Tennis Magazine. 29 October 2014. Retrieved 6 January 2019.
  14. ^ "Player profile – Ilana Kloss". www.fedcup.com. International Tennis Federation (ITF). Archived from the original on 30 March 2019. Retrieved 30 March 2019.
  15. ^ Chatoian, Ralph (23 April 1974). "An Analysis of the Pro Tennis League". Daily Independent Journal. San Rafael, California. p. 28.
  16. ^ Mulligan, Stephen (2011). "3. 1971–1975". Were You There?: Over 300 Wonderful, Weird, an Wacky Moments from the Pittsburgh Civic/Mellon Arena. RoseDog Books. pp. 62–64. ISBN 978-1-4349-8552-1. LCCN 2011278129.
  17. ^ Chatoian, Ralph (9 March 1976). "Golden Gaters Add Some French to Arsenal". Daily Independent Journal. San Rafael, California. p. 24.
  18. ^ Gurnick, Ken (21 September 2018). "Addition of King, Kloss sends 'strong message'". MLB.com. Retrieved 31 October 2018.
  19. ^ Dodgers part-owner BJK celebrates World Series win - Tennis.com
  20. ^ "Angel City Confirms Name as Angel City Football Club and Officially Joins National Women's Soccer League" (Press release). National Women’s Soccer League. 21 October 2020. Archived from the original on 26 October 2020. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
  21. ^ "Staff". www.thepwhl.com. Retrieved 19 May 2024.
  22. ^ "Portrait of a Pioneer: a Billie Jean King Documentary | TV Show Recaps, Celebrity Interviews & News About & For Gay, Lesbian & Bisexual Women". AfterEllen.com. 26 April 2006. Archived from the original on 18 May 2011. Retrieved 11 February 2011.
  23. ^ King, Billie Jean King (2021). All In. Knopf. p. 412. ISBN 978-1101947333.
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