Early years, a star is born

Two years ago, a coworker of mine decided to move back to her native Serbia. Fortunately, I was able to talk to her before her last day at work to wish her well. We had worked on several projects together, and I greatly valued her work ethic and expertise. Before wrapping up the call jokingly I told her, “Please, say hi to Monica Seles for me”. I knew Seles had moved to the US years ago and it was unlikely my coworker would see her. Yet, she replied, “it is funny you should say this, because Monica Seles and I grew up in the same apartment building back home. Her mother was good friends with my mother. And I can still remember her playing tennis against a wall of our building when she was smaller than a tennis racquet”. She continued, “in those days the Yugoslavian tennis body would not sponsor her until some coaches from other European countries saw the young Monica Seles play and were so impressed they then pressured the tennis body to fund her training in Florida.” I told her how Monica Seles was my favourite tennis player, and she replied not only was she a great player she is also a very wonderful person.

Unbreakable records

Monica Seles played professional tennis from 1989 until 2003 and during her illustrious career she won the following titles, just to name a few:

• 9 Grand Slam tournaments (8 of them as a teenager, a record unlikely to ever be broken)
• Olympic Bronze medal in 2000
• Fed Cup in 1996, 1999, and 2000 (now known as the Billie Jean King cup “the World Cup of Tennis”)
• 4 consecutive Canadian Opens from 1995 – 1998 (another record unlikely to be touched)
• 53 WTA Tour-level singles titles and 6 doubles titles

What makes these records even more impressive is the fact that Monica Seles did not play for over two years (28 months) during her prime due to a knife attack she suffered on April 30, 1993, the darkest day in tennis, at a tournament in Hamburg. Yet, despite a tragic event that could have cost Monica Seles not only her career but her life, she prevailed, returned to professional tennis yet still had to battle the emotional and physical trauma that remained. And if there is a darkest day in tennis, the happiest day in tennis must also exist too, right?

The Happiest Day in Tennis

Torontonians should be proud that the happiest day in tennis took place here in our beloved city on August 20, 1995. That day Monica Seles would win the Canadian Open over Amanda Coetzer 6 – 0, 6 – 1 in the National Tennis Center. It was her first tournament back after the 28-month exile. In what could only be described as the greatest comeback in sports history, Monica Seles would make it to the finals of the US Open a month later and the following year, she would win the Australian Open once again. She would then go on to win the Canadian Open three more times in 1996, 1997 and 1998. The Fed Cup in 1996, 1999, and 2000. And towards the later part of her career, she would win an Olympic medal in Sydney 2000.

The happiest day in tennis was a day full of joy since so many tennis fans worried that Monica Seles would not play again. And if had she chosen to leave the game everyone would have understood after what happened. I could not believe how someone could be so resilient after such trauma and not only return to the game but return as a champion.

Father and Coach

The pictures in this blog post came from the Toronto Public Library Digital Archive. They capture Monica Seles’s triumphant return to tennis here in Toronto. It was beautiful to see her lift a trophy once again. We Torontonians should feel honoured that she chose our city to make her return to tennis. Among these pictures there is a captivating picture below.

In this picture Monica Seles looks almost worried. Remember this is her first tournament 28 months after the traumatic attack. There is plenty of security around her. Her father and coach Károly Szeles with the sports sunglasses is close to her smiling and supporting her. Monica Seles credits him for convincing her to return to tennis.

With Father’s Day around the corner this picture reminds me of how our own dad always has shown us unconditional support. He happily chauffeured us countless times to school, university, tennis tournaments, soccer practice, and work even during winter storms. Our dad has been a life coach and mentor to my brothers and me. His own father passed away when he was young, so our dad became a father figure to his youngest siblings early in his life. An electrical engineer, he has worked in freezing weather, high altitude and dangerous conditions to support the family. And we are very fortunate and grateful he is with us today and thankfully in good health.

Early on Károly Szeles saw that her young daughter had a tremendous work ethic, and he encouraged her to turn pro and nurtured her talent all along the way. A cartoonist, he would explain to the young Monica Seles that her racquet was like Tom and the ball was like Jerry, which made her take the ball early on the rise like a cat chasing a mouse. Sadly, less than three years after this picture was taken, he would pass away due to cancer in 1998 an event that would impact Monica Seles greatly. She was only 24 when she lost her dad.

Fly Monica, Fly

In 1986 I was a recreational junior teenage tennis player who routinely lost in the first round of club tournaments and high school competitions. To change this, I decided to play with two hands on both sides like the great Gene Mayer. Also, that very year I was studying in Montreal French Immersion during the summer and was lucky that a tennis teaching pro working at the CEGEP offered me free tennis lessons. Immediately my game improved. I was able to hit the ball with more accuracy and power. “Remember, the ball goes where you want it to go”, he would often tell me. And I added both a top spin lob and drop shot to my game thanks to this wonderful Quebecois coach. Finally, now I started to get past the first few rounds of recreational tournaments and even won more than a few doubles matches for my high school.

So, when I first saw Monica Seles on TV in the late 80’s hitting with two hands on both sides I completely understood her game. She took the ball unbelievably early, had incredible reflexes, and hit winners with sharp angles that no one else could achieve. In brief, Monica Seles revolutionized the game with her court intelligence and skills.

Much has been written about what might have been had she not suffered that horrible attack. It is clear to me that she would have broken even more records. Yet, it’s time that we look at things differently and appreciate what Monica Seles achieved despite an event that would have ended the career of almost anyone else. We should celebrate all her majestic achievements (not just her Grand Slam victories), such as her 2000 Olympic medal, her three Fed Cups and her four consecutive Canadian Opens with the utmost admiration.

I abandoned the two-handed style as an adult when I became stronger and switched to one hand on both sides. And then two years ago due to tennis elbow I went back to playing with two hands on both sides. Once again, my game improved. To learn how to hit with two hands again I watched countless YouTube videos of Monica Seles playing tournaments. Watching these videos brought back wonderful memories of her career. For example, one can see in these videos New York Mayor David Dinkins her friend and super fan always cheering for Monica Seles at the US Open from the stands. Her always smiling and enthusiastic father and coach Károly Szeles is a constant presence. One can see all her opponents through the years legends such as Chris Evert in 1989 to a young up and coming Serena Williams in 1999. And there is even a musical video. In 1996, shortly after her incredible comeback victory at the Australian Open the band Young Elders invited her to their studio to serenade her with their song: Fly Monica, Fly. Here is the video. And you can see in this video Monica Seles with her beautiful smile that would light up entire stadiums. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4H18XLRhIJM

Further reading: Getting a grip : on my body, my mind, my self by Monica Seles https://www.torontopubliclibrary.ca/detail.jsp?Entt=RDM2483490&R=2483490