For the week of January 23 - 29, 2002

Wilander voted into tennis shrine

Native of Sweden, Hailey resident

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Hailey resident Mats Wilander, 37, winner of eight championships in Grand Slam events, is the newest member of the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport, R.I.

Coming off the ski slopes at Sun Valley, he learned of the honor last Wednesday. Wilander, who moved to Hailey in 2000 from Connecticut, won 33 career singles titles and was the world’s #1 player in 1988.

A grind-it-out player who was known for his work ethic and passion for the game, Wilander has compared his style to that of the world’s current #1 player, Lleyton Hewitt.

Wilander has said his career highlights were winning three of four Grand Slam singles championships in 1988 and going 36-14 in singles and 7-2 in doubles for 11 Davis Cup teams from Sweden.

A native of Vaxjo, Sweden, Wilander and American Pam Shriver were announced as the newest members of the shrine Jan. 16. They will be formally inducted July 13.

Since joining the Champions Senior Tour in 1998, Wilander has won three Champions Tour titles and has been a Champions Tour finalist eight times.

He coaches Russian Marat Safin, the 2000 U.S. Open singles king who made the Australian Open quarterfinals Monday by upsetting Pete Sampras.

Wilander and his wife Sonya have four children, two enrolled at The Community School in Sun Valley.

 

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