Although tennis has had its fair share of psycho Pops in tow, the support of loyal, self-sacrificing and faithful fathers has been a major force behind the careers of many of the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour’s biggest stars.
Venus and Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova and Kim Clijsters have long acknowledged their fathers as a crucial key to their successes.
While Richard Williams, Yuri Sharapov and the late Leo Clijsters are not models of perfect fathers, two things are certain. Their daughters are major champions—-and they adore their daddies.
Richard Williams
Richard Williams remains one of the most polarizing parents in tennis, yet he is arguably the most successful sports parent of this generation after raising not one, but two of the greatest athletes of this era.
From his humble history, Richard Williams is a living example of the American Dream. He taught himself how to play tennis using video tapes and inspired his two youngest daughters to follow in his footsteps. While natural God-given talent has a lot to do with the success of the Williams sisters, a large portion of credit rests at the feet of Richard whose unorthodox methods propelled Venus and Serena to a successful career that has surpassed even Richard’s wildest imaginations.
Yuri Sharapov
Not many fathers would love their daughters enough to immigrate to a foreign land with a few hundred dollars in their pockets just so she can hit a ball.
But Yuri Sharapov is not your atypical father. Blessed with just as much determination and grit as his daughter displays on court, Sharapov helped transform Maria into not only a world-class tennis player, but a celebrity superstar. Even when Sharapova’s game started to show signs of slipping, Yuri never lost faith in his daughter.
That fact is not lost on Maria, either.
“He’s been with me through all the good times, through all the bad times,” Maria said in 2007. “We always have our good moments. We always have our bad moments, daughter/dad moments, plenty of those. But we get over it really fast. At the end of the day, we’re very close.”
Leo Clijsters
Before his passing in January, Leo Clijsters helped manage the career of one of Belgium’s most famous sportswomen—-his own daughter Kim. While Kim’s career was cut short in 2007 because of injuries, it gave Clijsters an opportunity to spend her father’s last days with him as he succumbed to lung cancer at the age of fifty-two. As a testimony to her love for her father, Clijsters spent the last year of her father’s life taking care of him.
After his death, Clijsters returned to tennis, first as a means of release. “I was trying to get my mind back together after a year spent constantly caring for my father,” Clijsters said last month in comments published by the Times Online. “I wish, of course, he could have lived for another ten years or more.” After rediscovering her old love, Clijsters announced her plans to make a comeback to the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour this August.
Thanks for the nice article Aaress. I still wonder though, are Dad/Mum coaches ok until a certain point in a players career? One day they are Children who need not only coaching but protection also. Then they are grown Women, and I wonder if in some cases its still a good thing to have Dad/Mum around as a coach. Could that stop some players from progressing?
Maybe another coach can add that one thing the player was missing?
An Enigma
No Walter Bartoli?
Seriously though I know it wasn’t an exhaustive list and I think the three you have chosen Aaress are all strong candidates.
Nicely written. Happy Father’s Day to your own Dad who is chanpion among fathers!
Well, Jim, I agree that there often does come a place for parents to turn the coaching reins over to someone else. Not in every case, mind you, but some. Take for example Sharapova. Her father was her primary coach for years, but he also consulted with some of the best minds in the sport including Nick Bollettieri and Robert Lansdorp. Parents need the wisdom to know when to step back in their kid’s careers and when to stay close.
Honestly, his name did come to mind while I was writing the piece, but I decided to stick with four recent Grand Slam champions. He’s a good example of a close tennis father, though.
Thank you! He’s definitely a champion! Missed seeing your family at church. Hope you are all well!