Stefanie Maria Graff, was born on June 14, 1969, in Mannheim, Germany. She was nicknamed ‘Fräulein Forehand’ in the tennis world, for her ferocious forehand, whilst being considered the epitome of grace for her presence and demeanour on-court. She had the rare ability of excelling in every surface, grass, clay and hard-court. She started playing competitive tennis since age 5, after she was introduced to the sport by her father, Peter Graf.
After winning the European Championship under-12s and under-18s, in the year 1982, she started her career as a professional in 1983, when she was just 13 years old. She steadily kept climbing the WTA rankings for the next 3 years, and by 1986 she had emerged as challenger to reigning No.1 Martina Navratilova, to whom she lost at the 1986 US Open semi-final.
She won her 1st grand slam at the 1987 Rolland Garros, in which she beat Navratilova in the final. The same year, she reached the finals of Wimbledon as well as US Open, but she lost in both matches to Navratilova. To the tennis world, a phenomena had arrived. She finished the year as World No. 1 in WTA rankings, which she would retain for the next 3 years. In 1988, Graf made history as she went on to win the Golden Slam (Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, US Open, and the Olympics Gold Medal) in a calendar year. BBC honoured her with the Overseas Sports Personality of the year, for 1988.
In 1991, Graf struggled with form and injuries, and conceded the year-ending World No.1 position to Monica Seles, with whom she formed a famous rivalry. She regained the top rank after she won the 1993 French Open singles title, and remained there till 1996. Steffi’s last 3 years as a professional were beset with injuries, she still went on to win the French Open title in 1999. She retired from professional tennis, after losing to Lindsay Davenport in the 1999 Wimbledon final.
At the end of her career, Graf had won 22 Grand Slam singles titles, 1 gold and 1 silver medal at the Olympics. On court, she had established a good relationship with her fans. During situations of pressure, her fans would shout encouragements to her, and she would always acknowledge them. Besides humility, she also had a sense of humour. Once when asked by a fan if she would marry him, she promptly replied – “How much money do you have?”
Stefanie has been married to American tennis legend Andre Agassi, since October 22, 2001. The couple lives in Summerlin, Las Vegas, with their two children, son Jaden Gill (born October 26, 2001), and daughter Jaz Elle (born October 3, 2003).
She is also the founder and chairwoman of Children for Tomorrow, which supports children affected by war, to provide a better future to them through therapy.
Sportzwiki wishes her a warm and happy 46th birthday.