Björn Borg
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Country | Sweden | |
| Residence | Monte Carlo | |
| Date of birth | June 6 1956 | |
| Place of birth | Stockholm | |
| Height | 180 cm (5 ft 11 in) | |
| Weight | 72 kg (160 lb) | |
| Turned Pro | 1973 (international debut in 1971) | |
| Retired | 1984 (unsuccessful comeback from 1991 to 1993) | |
| Plays | Right-handed; two-handed backhand | |
| Career Prize Money | US$ 3,655,751 | |
| Singles | ||
| Career record: | 587-124 (82.6%) | |
| Career titles: | 97 (including 61 listed by the ATP) | |
| Highest ranking: | 1 (August 23, 1977) | |
| Grand Slam results | ||
| Australian Open | 3R (1974) | |
| French Open | W (1974, '75, '78, '79, '80, '81) | |
| Wimbledon | W (1976, '77, '78, '79, '80) | |
| U.S. Open | F (1976, '78, '80, '81) | |
| Doubles | ||
| Career record: | 86-81 (51.2%) | |
| Career titles: | 4 | |
| Highest ranking: | 890 (March 22, 1993) | |
Björn Rune Borg (born June 6 1956, in Stockholm, Sweden) is a former World No. 1 tennis player from Sweden regarded by some observers and tennis players as the greatest player in the sport's history.[1][2][3] During a nine-year career, he won 41 percent of the Grand Slam singles tournaments he entered (11 of 27) and 89.8 percent of the Grand Slam singles matches he played. Both are male open era records. In addition, Borg's six French Open singles titles are an all-time record.[4][5] He is the only player in the open era to have won both Wimbledon and the French Open in the same year more than once, as he won both in three consecutive years.
[edit] Career overview
As a child growing up in Södertälje, a town near Stockholm, Borg became fascinated with a golden tennis racquet that his father won at a table-tennis tournament. His father gave him the racquet, beginning one of the brightest careers in tennis history.
In 1972, at the age of 15, Borg became one of the youngest players ever to represent his country in the Davis Cup and won his debut singles rubber in five sets against seasoned professional Onny Parun of New Zealand. Later that year, he won the Wimbledon junior singles title.
In 1973, Borg reached the Wimbledon main draw quarterfinals in his first attempt.
In 1974, Borg won his first top-level singles title at the Italian Open. Two weeks later, he won his first Grand Slam title at the French Open, defeating Manuel Orantes in the final 2-6, 6-7, 6-0, 6-1, 6-1. Barely 18 at the time, Borg was the youngest-ever male French Open champion (the record has since been lowered by Mats Wilander in 1982 and Michael Chang in 1989).
In early 1975, Borg defeated Rod Laver, then 36 years old, in a semifinal of the World Championship Tennis (WCT) finals in Dallas, Texas 7-6, 3-6, 5-7, 7-5, 6-2. Borg then lost to Arthur Ashe in the final.
Borg retained his French Open title in 1975, beating Guillermo Vilas in the final in straight sets. Borg then reached the Wimbledon quarterfinals, where he lost in four sets to Ashe, the eventual champion.
Borg won two singles and one doubles rubber in the 1975 Davis Cup final as Sweden beat Czechoslovakia 3-2. With these singles wins, Borg had won 19 consecutive Davis Cup singles rubbers since 1973. That was already a record at the time. But Borg never lost another Davis Cup singles rubber, and, by the end of his career, he had stretched that winning streak to 33--a Davis Cup record that still stands.
Borg won Wimbledon in 1976 without losing a set, defeating the much-favoured Ilie Năstase in the final. Borg became the youngest male Wimbledon champion of the modern era at 20 years and 1 month (a record subsequently broken by Boris Becker, who won Wimbledon aged 17 in 1985). Some speculate that Borg's surviving the first week of Wimbledon, when the courts were slick and fast, was the key to his success. This might have been due to the unusually hot conditions that summer. The courts played slower in the second week, which suited Borg's baseline game. Borg also reached the final of the 1976 U.S. Open, which was then being played on clay courts. Borg lost in four sets to World No. 1 Jimmy Connors.
Borg missed the French Open in 1977 because he was under contract with WTT, but he repeated his Wimbledon triumph, although this time he was pushed much harder. He defeated his good friend Vitas Gerulaitis in a semifinal 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 3-6, 8-6.[6] In the final, Borg was pushed to five sets for the third time in the tournament, this time by Connors. The win propelled Borg to the #1 ranking on the computer, albeit for just one week in August.
Borg was at the height of his career from 1978 through 1980, winning the French Open and Wimbledon all three years.
In 1978, Borg won straight-set finals over Vilas at the French Open and Connors at Wimbledon but was defeated in straight sets by Connors in the final of the U.S. Open, now held on hard courts in Flushing Meadow, New York. That autumn, Borg faced John McEnroe for the first time in a semifinal of the Stockholm Open and was upset 6-3, 6-4. Borg did not drop a set at the 1978 French Open, a feat only he and Năstase have accomplished during the open era.
Borg lost to McEnroe again in four sets in the final of the 1979 WCT Finals but was now overtaking Connors for the top ranking. Borg established himself firmly in the top spot with his fourth French Open singles title and fourth straight Wimbledon singles title, defeating Connors in a straight-set semifinal at the latter tournament. At the French Open, Borg defeated big-serving Victor Pecci in a four-set final, and at Wimbledon, Borg took five sets to overcome an even bigger server, Roscoe Tanner. Borg was upset by Tanner at the U.S. Open, in a four-set quarterfinal played under the lights.
At the season-ending Masters tournament in January 1980, Borg survived a close semifinal against McEnroe 6-3, 6-7, 7-6(3). He then beat Gerulaitis in straight sets, winning his first Masters and first title in New York. In June, he overcame Gerulaitis, again in straight sets, for his fifth French Open title. Again, he did not drop a set.
Borg won his fifth consecutive Wimbledon singles title in 1980 by defeating McEnroe in a five-set match often listed among the best Wimbledon finals ever played. In the fourth-set tiebreak, McEnroe saved five match points and Borg six set points before McEnroe won the set. Borg then won 19 straight points on serve in the deciding set and prevailed after 3 hours, 53 minutes.
Borg lost to McEnroe in another five-set final, this one lasting 4 hours and 13 minutes, at the 1980 U.S. Open. He then defeated McEnroe in the final of the Stockholm Open, 6-3, 6-4, and faced him one more time that year, in the round-robin portion of the year-end Masters, played in January 1981. With 19,103 fans in attendance, Borg won a deciding third-set tie-break for the second year in a row, 6-4, 6-7, 7-6(3). Borg then defeated Ivan Lendl for his second Masters title, 6-4, 6-2, 6-2.
Borg won his last Grand Slam title at the French Open in 1981, defeating Lendl in a five-set final. Borg's six French Open singles titles remains a record for a male player.
In reaching the Wimbledon final in 1981, Borg stretched his winning streak at the All England Club to a record 41 matches. In a semifinal, Borg was down to Connors by two sets to none before coming back to win the match 0-6, 4-6, 6-3, 6-0, 6-4. Borg's streak was brought to an end by McEnroe, who defeated him in four sets.
Borg's last Grand Slam final was a four set loss to McEnroe at the 1981 U.S. Open.
By the end of 1981, Borg was on the verge of break-down. In 1982, Borg played only one tournament, losing to Yannick Noah in the quarterfinals of Monte Carlo. Nevertheless, Borg's announcement in January 1983 that he was retiring from the game at the age of 26 was a shock to the tennis world.
Borg was ranked the World No. 1 in six different stretches between 1977 and 1981, totaling 109 weeks. Tennis commentators considered him as the best player from 1977 through 1980. During his career, he won a total of 77 (61 listed on the Association of Tennis Professionals website) top-level singles and four doubles titles.
Borg won the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Overseas Personality Award in 1979.
Borg was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1987.
After retiring, Borg suffered a drug overdose, was rumoured to have attempted suicide (which he denied), and had a turbulent relationship with his then-wife, the Italian singer Loredana Bertè. He later bounced back as the owner of the Björn Borg fashion label, whose most noted advertising campaigns asked Swedes (from the pages of a leading national newspaper) to "Fuck for the Future."[7]
In the early-1990s, Borg attempted a comeback on the men's professional tennis tour. This time around, however, he was completely unsuccessful. Playing with his old wooden rackets in an attempt to regain his once-indomitable touch, he lost his first comeback match in 1991 to Jordi Arrese at the Monte Carlo Open. A series of first-round losses to low-ranked players followed over the next two years. The closest he came to winning a match was in 1993 in Moscow, when he pushed Alexander Volkov to three sets and lost a final set tiebreaker 9-7. After that match, he retired from the tour for good and confined himself to playing on the senior tour, with modern rackets, where he renewed his old rivalries with McEnroe, Connors, and Vilas.
In March 2006, Bonhams Auction House in London announced that it would auction Borg's Wimbledon trophies and two of his winning rackets on June 21 2006.[8] Several players then called Borg wondering what he was thinking, but only McEnroe was able to make Borg reconsider. According to Dagens Nyheter – who had talked to Borg – McEnroe called from New York and asked, "What's up? Have you gone mad?"[9] The conversation apparently persuaded Borg to buy out the trophies from Bonhams at an undisclosed amount.
In an TV advertisement first shown in August 2007, Borg and McEnroe parody their rivalry in an ad to promote UK supermarket Tesco's new "one in front" checkout opening policy.
On December 10, 2006, the British Broadcasting Corporation gave Borg a Lifetime Achievement Award, which was presented by Becker.[10]
[edit] Place among the all-time greats
Borg won the fourth most Grand Slam singles titles (11) of all time, behind Pete Sampras (14), Roy Emerson (12), and recently, Roger Federer (12). Among his other achievements are a record 89.8 Grand Slam match winning percentage (141-16) and a male open era record 41 winning percentage for Grand Slam tournaments played (11 of 27). The French Open-Wimbledon double he achieved three times consecutively was called by Wimbledon officials "the most difficult double in tennis"[11] and "a feat considered impossible among today's players."[12] No player has managed to achieve this double since – and indeed Andre Agassi is the only male player since Borg to win both the French Open and Wimbledon men's singles titles over the course of his career. Both Federer and Rafael Nadal came very close to winning the French Open-Wimbledon double by twice reaching the final of the French and Wimbledon (2006/2007), with the former winning Wimbledon and the latter winning the French.
In his 1979 autobiography, Jack Kramer, the long-time tennis promoter and great player himself, had already included Borg in his list of the 21 greatest players of all time. And in 2003, Bud Collins chose Borg as one of his top-five male players of all time.[13]
Borg never won either the U.S. Open or the Australian Open, losing in the final at the U.S. Open four times. The only players to defeat Borg in a Grand Slam final were fellow World No. 1 tennis players John McEnroe and Jimmy Connors. Borg chose to play the Australian Open only once, in 1974, where he lost in the third round. Borg has stated publicly that he would have attempted to complete the calendar year Grand Slam and played in the Australian Open had he succeeded in winning the first three Grand Slam tournaments of the year,[citation needed] which he never did. (During Borg's career, the Australian Open was the last Grand Slam tournament of each year.)
[edit] Playing style
Borg had one of the most distinctive playing styles in the open era. Borg played from the baseline, with powerful ground-strokes and a two-handed backhand (very rare at the time and unorthodox). He hit the ball hard and high from the back of the court and brought it down with considerable topspin, which made his ground-strokes very consistent. There had been other players, particularly Rod Laver and Arthur Ashe, who played with topspin on both the forehand and backhand. But Laver and Ashe only used topspin as a way to mix up their shots and pass their opponents at the net easily. Borg was one of the first top players to use heavy topspin on his shots consistently.
Complementing his consistent ground-strokes was his fitness. Both of these factors allowed Borg to be dominant at Roland Garros.
However, one of the feats that make Borg unique is his dominance on the grass courts of Wimbledon, where baseliners historically do not succeed. Experts attribute his dominance on grass to his consistency and an underrated serve.
Another trait usually associated with Borg is his grace under pressure. His calm court demeanor earned him the nickname of the "Ice Man" or "Ice-Borg". [1]
Borg's physical conditioning was legendary as he could outlast most of his opponents under the most grueling match conditions. He is the most famous athlete known to have bradycardia, with a heart rate at rest reported to be between 30 and 45 beats per minute. [2] [3] [4][5]
Borg is credited with helping to develop the style of play that has come to dominate the game today.[citation needed]
[edit] Grand Slam singles finals
[edit] Wins (11)
[edit] Runner-ups (5)
| Year | Championship | Opponent in Final | Score in Final |
| 1976 | U.S. Open | Image:Flag of the United States.svg Jimmy Connors | 6-4, 3-6, 7-6, 6-4 |
| 1978 | U.S. Open | Image:Flag of the United States.svg Jimmy Connors | 6-4, 6-2, 6-2 |
| 1980 | U.S. Open | Image:Flag of the United States.svg John McEnroe | 7-6, 6-1, 6-7, 5-7, 6-4 |
| 1981 | Wimbledon | Image:Flag of the United States.svg John McEnroe | 4-6, 7-6, 7-6, 6-4 |
| 1981 | U.S. Open | Image:Flag of the United States.svg John McEnroe | 4-6, 6-2, 6-4, 6-3 |
[edit] Career singles titles (97)
[edit] 61 singles titles listed in the ATP Website
[edit] Runner-ups (24)
[edit] Other singles titles, including invitational tournament titles (18)
Tokyo - Suntory Cup (4-men invitational tournament), Essen (4-men invitational tournament), Manila (4-men invitational tournament), Anvers (4-men invitational tournament)
- 1979 (1) - Brussels (4-men invitational tournament)
- 1980 (1) - Berlin (4-men invitational)
- 1985 (1) - Tokyo (4-men invitational)
[edit] Other (non-ATP, exhibition/invitational and special events) singles titles - draw at least eight players (4)
| Year | Date | Tournament | Surface | Prize Money | Final Opponent | Final Result | Winners Prize |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | Sept 28-30 | Marbella | Clay | Adriano Panatta | 6-2 6-2 7-5 | ||
| 1979 | Nov 26-29 | Milan - Master Brooklyn | Carpet | John McEnroe | 1-6 6-1 6-4 | ||
| 1979 | Nov 29-Dec 2 | Frankfurt - Round Robin Invitational | Carpet | Jimmy Connors | 6-3 4-6 6-3 6-4 | ||
| 1981 | Oct 10-13 | Edmonton - Challenge Cup | Carpet | Jose-Luis Clerc | 6-2 6-2 7-5 |
[edit] Other (non-ATP, exhibition/invitational and special events) singles titles - draw less than eight players (12)
| Year | Date | Tournament | Surface | Final Opponent | Final Result | Winners Prize |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | Feb 17-18 | Vienna - 4-men invitational | Carpet | John McEnroe | 3-6 6-1 6-4 | |
| 1979 | Sept 15-16 | Essen - 4-men invitational | Clay | Ilie Nastase | 6-1 6-4 | |
| 1979 | Oct 2-3 | Groningen - 4-men invitational | Carpet | Eddie Dibbs | 6-4 6-1 | |
| 1979 | Oct 5-6 | Rotterdam - 4-men invitational | Carpet | Eddie Dibbs | 6-3 6-0 | |
| 1979 | Dec 27-28 | Cairo - 4-men invitational | Clay | Ismail El Shafei | 6-3 6-4 | |
| 1980 | March 1-2 | Mar del Plata, Argentina - 4-men invitational | Guillermo Vilas | 6-1 6-3 6-3 | ||
| 1980 | March 8-9 | Stuttgart - 4-men invitational | Carpet | Adriano Panatta | 6-2 5-7 6-1 | |
| 1981 | Jan 26-27 | Bologna - 4-men invitational | Carpet | Jose-Luis Clerc | 6-7 7-5 7-6 | |
| 1982 | March 24-25 | Cascais - $68,000 4-men invitational | Carpet | Vitas Gerulaitis | 7-6 6-1 | |
| 1982 | March 24-25 | Tokyo - $250,000 Suntory Cup | Carpet | Guillermo Vilas | 6-1 6-2 | $110,000 |
| 1982 | Nov 5-7 | Sydney - Akai Gold Challenge | Carpet | Ivan Lendl | 6-1 6-4 6-2 | |
| 1984 | May 10-13 | Kobe - Championship of the Gunze Invitational Tennis Tournament | Harold Solomon | 6-2 6-2 |
[edit] Sources for this section
- John Barrett, editor, World of Tennis Yearbooks, London, from 1976 through 1983.
- Michel Sutter, Vainqueurs Winners 1946-2003, Paris, 2003. Sutter has attempted to list all tournaments meeting his criteria for selection beginning with 1946 and ending in the fall of 1991 . For each tournament, he has indicated the city, the date of the final, the winner, the runner-up, and the score of the final. A tournament is included in his list if: (1) the draw for the tournament included at least eight players (with a few exceptions, such as the Pepsi Grand Slam tournaments in the second half of the 1970s); and (2) the level of the tournaments was at least equal to the present day challenger tournaments. Sutter's book is probably the most exhaustive source of tennis tournament information since World War II, even though some professional tournaments held before the start of the open era are missing. Later, Sutter issued a second edition of his book, with only the players, their wins, and years for the 1946 through April 27, 2003, period.
[edit] Grand Slam and Masters singles tournament timeline
| Tournament | 1973 | 1974 | 1975 | 1976 | 1977 | 1978 | 1979 | 1980 | 1981 | Career WR | Career Win-Loss |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Slam Tournaments | |||||||||||
| Australian Open | A | 3R | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 0 / 1 | 1-1 |
| French Open | 4R | W | W | QF | A | W | W | W | W | 6 / 8 | 49-2 |
| Wimbledon | QF | 3R | QF | W | W | W | W | W | F | 5 / 9 | 51-4 |
| U.S. Open | 4R | 2R | SF | F | 4R | F | QF | F | F | 0 / 9 | 40-9 |
| Win Ratio | 0 / 3 | 1 / 4 | 1 / 3 | 1 / 3 | 1 / 2 | 2 / 3 | 2 / 3 | 2 / 3 | 1 / 3 | 11 / 27 | N/A |
| Win-Loss | 10-3 | 12-3 | 16-2 | 17-2 | 10-1 | 20-1 | 18-1 | 20-1 | 19-2 | N/A | 141-16 |
| Year-End Championship | |||||||||||
| The Masters1 | A | RR | F | A | F | A | W | W | A | 2 / 5 | 15 - 7 |
A = did not participate in the tournament
WR = the ratio of the number of won tournaments to the number of tournaments played
1The Masters tournaments for calendar years 1977, 1979, and 1980 were actually held in January of the following year. In this table, however, the year of the tournament is listed for the preceding year.
[edit] Records
[edit] Grand Slam records
- Borg's 11 Grand Slam singles titles out of 27 tournaments played gives him a male open era record 41 winning percentage. Margaret Smith Court holds the record among all players.
- In Grand Slam singles tournaments, Borg's match record is 141–16, giving him an 89.8 winning percentage, better than any male player ever.[citation needed] The only other male players in the open era with winning percentages over 80 are Roger Federer (86.3), Jimmy Connors (82.6), Ivan Lendl (81.9), John McEnroe (81.5), and Andre Agassi (80.9).
- Borg won more French Open singles titles (6) than any other male player in tennis history.
- Borg won more Wimbledon singles titles (5) than any other male player since the abolition of the Challenge Round in 1922 until Pete Sampras improved the record to 7 titles in 2000.
- Borg won four consecutive French Open singles titles, an all-time record. He retired while on a winning streak of 28 consecutive matches at the French Open.
- Borg won more consecutive Wimbledon singles titles (5) than any man under modern rules until Federer equalled his record in 2007. Only William Renshaw won more consecutive titles (1881-86), but in Renshaw's day, the defending champion played only one match, the Challenge Round. After the adoption of the current rules, Fred Perry established a record of three consecutive Wimbledon titles from 1934 through 1936, until Borg equalled it in 1978.
- Borg's 41 consecutive match winning streak at Wimbledon remains an all-time record. Federer has come closest to matching this, with an active winning streak of 34 consecutive Wimbledon matches from 2003 through the 2007 final.
- Borg played in six consecutive Wimbledon singles finals, still a record since the abolition of the Challenge Round in 1922.
- Borg played in four consecutive French Open singles finals, a men's open era record.
- Borg played in 16 Grand Slam singles finals, a male record for the open era and second in tennis history only to Rod Laver who played 17 finals. This record was first broken by Lendl (19 finals) and subsequently by Sampras (18 finals).
- Borg won at least one Grand Slam singles title for eight consecutive years (1974–1981), an all-time men's record, later matched by Sampras (1993–2000).
- Borg defeated more players (9) in Grand Slam singles finals than any male player in history. Sampras and Federer both tied this mark.
[edit] Youngest to win
- In 1972, Borg became the youngest-ever winner of a Davis Cup match, at age 15.
- In 1974, one month before his 18th birthday, Borg became the youngest winner of the Italian Open. That record has since been broken.
- In 1974, only days after his 18th birthday, Borg became the youngest man ever to hold a Grand Slam singles title. He retained that distinction until another Swede, Mats Wilander, won the French Open in 1982.
- At 18, he was the youngest winner of the U.S. Professional Championships until Aaron Krickstein won in 1983.
- In 1976 at age 20, Borg became the youngest winner of Wimbledon during the open era until Boris Becker became the youngest Grand Slam winner of all time by taking Wimbledon at age 17 years, 7 months in 1985 (a record broken by Michael Chang who won the French Open when he was 17 years, 3 months in 1989).
- Borg won his 11th Grand Slam singles title in 1981 aged 25 years and 1 day, the youngest male to reach that number of titles. By comparison, Roger Federer won his 11th aged 25 years and 324 days; Pete Sampras won his 11th at almost age 27, Roy Emerson at age 30, and Rod Laver at age 31.
[edit] Match competition
- Borg compiled a 576-124 win-loss singles record, winning 82.29 percent of the matches he played. By comparison, Jimmy Connors won 81.96 percent, Ivan Lendl won 81.75 percent, John McEnroe won 81.66 percent, Pete Sampras won 77.44 percent, and Andre Agassi won 76.05 percent.[citation needed]
- Borg won 14 consecutive five-set singles matches before losing to McEnroe at the 1980 U.S. Open, a record for the open era.[citation needed]
- In career five-set matches, Borg was 24-4. His 85.7 winning percentage was unrivalled in the open era, with Aaron Krickstein in second place at 75.7 percent (28-9).[citation needed] Five of Borg's wins were in Grand Slam finals, a mark that surpassed Bill Tilden (who won four) and has remained unequalled.
- In 1980, Borg won the longest-ever Wimbledon singles final to that time,[citation needed] 3 hours and 53 minutes (the record stood until 1982). That year, he also lost the longest-ever U.S. Open final to that time,[citation needed] 4 hours and 13 minutes (the record stood until 1988).
- Borg won the longest tiebreak of the open era, 20-18 in the third set of his first round match at the 1973 Wimbledon – a mark that has been tied four times (by Roger Federer, Goran Ivanišević, José Acasuso, and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga).[citation needed]
- Borg won 19 consecutive points on serve in the fifth set on two occasions: his 1980 Wimbledon final against McEnroe and his 1980 U.S. Open quarterfinal against Roscoe Tanner.
[edit] Career winning streaks
- On the list of open era winning streaks, Borg is third (43 consecutive tour matches in 1978). The only other men with winning streaks of at least 40 matches are Guillermo Vilas (46), Ivan Lendl (44), John McEnroe (42), and Roger Federer (41).
- Borg previously held the record for most consecutive wins on grass, with 41 victories (all at Wimbledon). Federer, who customarily plays a lesser grass tournament in Halle in addition to Wimbledon, has a 54 match winning streak on grass (from 2003 through the 2007 Wimbledon final).
- Borg holds the Davis Cup record singles winning streak at 33 consecutive victories (his streak was never broken, for he retired without losing).
- Borg holds third place for most consecutive wins on clay, with 46 victories in 1977-79. Only Rafael Nadal with 81 and Vilas with 53 have won more consecutive clay court matches.
[edit] Miscellaneous
- Borg's 61 career titles as listed on the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) website places him sixth on that website's open era list behind Jimmy Connors (105), Ivan Lendl (94), John McEnroe (77), Pete Sampras (64), and Guillermo Vilas (62).
- Borg retired with US$3.6 million in career prize money, a record at the time.
- According to the match scores listed on the ATP website, Borg bageled his opponents (sets won 6-0) 116 times from 1973 through 1981, compared to Roger Federer's 55 bagels from 1999 through the 2007 French Open.
- Borg was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1987 at only 30 years of age.
- In 1999, Borg was elected the best Swedish sportsman ever by a jury in his home country. His tennis rivals included a pair of top ranked players: Mats Wilander (who won seven Grand Slam titles) and Stefan Edberg (who won six).
- In their only career match-up, Borg defeated Wilander in September 1981 in the first round of a tournament in Geneva, Switzerland. The score was 6-1, 6-1. Geneva was the last tournament that Borg won during his career.
- Borg won the Svenska Dagbladet Gold Medal both in 1974 and in 1978, the latter being shared with alpine skier Ingemar Stenmark. Both men are the only people to ever win this honor twice.
- Borg was well-known for his sleek signature line of Fila sportswear, particularly the pin-striped tennis shirts that became a trademark. Although Borg wore Fila throughout the world, he used different rackets and shoes for different parts of the world. In North America, he wore Tretorn sneakers and used a Bancroft Borg frame, while everywhere else it was the Donnay Allwood or Borg Pro, with Diadora Borg Elite shoes. There was superstition in what he wore, too. Borg always reverted to the traditional green pinstripe shirt for Wimbledon, no matter what other design he may have worn at the time.
Bjorn Borg belongs to the famous Swedes born 1956 - Ingemar Stenmark slalom - Linda Haglund sprinter and Frank Andersson wrestling.
[edit] See also
- List of Swedish sportspeople
- World number one male tennis player rankings
- Tennis male players statistics
- List of Grand Slam Men's Singles champions
[edit] References
- Autobiography: Borg, Bjorn (with Eugene L. Scott) "My Life and Game". (1980) ISBN 0283986638
- ^ "Borg may still be at top of his game", The Otago Daily Times, July 14 2007
- ^ "Navratilova joins Laver and Borg on the shortlist (as voted for by . . . Navratilova)", Alastair Campbell, The Times, July 3 2004
- ^ "When he was king", Tim Pears, The Observer, June 5 2005
- ^ "Compare and contrast", Jon Wertheim, Sports Illustrated, September 23 2002
- ^ "Borg still making the shots", Douglas Robson, USA Today, May 25 2006
- ^ "Classic Matches: Borg v Gerulaitis", BBC Sport, May 31 2004
- ^ "Bjorn Borg interview", The Observer, January 7 2007
- ^ "Borg to auction off Wimbledon trophies", USA Today, March 3 2006
- ^ "McEnroe fick Borg på andra tankar" (Swedish). DN Sport (2006-03-28).
- ^ "Sports Personality: The winners", BBC Sport, December 10 2006
- ^ "Wimbledon Legends: Bjorn Borg", Wimbledon official website
- ^ "Strokes for Agassi: He belongs among the 10 greatest ever", Bruce Jenkins, San Francisco Chronicle, September 13 2006
- ^ "Top Stars of Tennis", Bud Collins, MSNBC
[edit] External links
- ATP Tour profile for Björn Borg
- International Tennis Hall of Fame profile
- Official Wimbledon website profile
- BBC profile
- tenniscorner.net profile
- Davis Cup record
- The Tennis Channel: The Björn Borg Saga
- Björn Borg fashion company
- http://bjornborgfanforever2.free.fr/cariboost3/index.html
| Awards | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Rolf Edling | Svenska Dagbladet Gold Medal 1974 | Succeeded by Ingemar Stenmark |
| Preceded by Frank Andersson | Svenska Dagbladet Gold Medal with Ingemar Stenmark 1978 | Succeeded by Malmö FF |
| Preceded by — | ITF World Champion 1978-1980 | Succeeded by John McEnroe |
| Sporting positions | ||
| Preceded by Jimmy Connors Jimmy Connors Jimmy Connors John McEnroe John McEnroe John McEnroe | World No. 1 August 23, 1977 - August 29, 1977 April 9, 1979 - May 20, 1979 July 9, 1979 - March 2, 1980 March 24, 1980 - August 10, 1980 August 18, 1980 - July 5, 1981 July 20, 1981 - August 2, 1981 | Succeeded by Jimmy Connors Jimmy Connors John McEnroe John McEnroe John McEnroe John McEnroe |
French Open men's singles champions* |
|---|
* Open Era • (1968) Ken Rosewall • (1969) Rod Laver • (1970-71) Jan Kodeš • (1972) Andrés Gimeno • (1973) Ilie Năstase • (1974-75) Björn Borg • (1976) Adriano Panatta • (1977) Guillermo Vilas • (1976) Jimmy Connors • (1977) Guillermo Vilas • (1978-81) Björn Borg • (1982) Mats Wilander • (1983) Yannick Noah • (1984) Ivan Lendl • (1985) Mats Wilander • (1986-87) Ivan Lendl • (1988) Mats Wilander • (1989) Michael Chang • (1990) Andrés Gómez • (1991-92) Jim Courier • (1993-94) Sergi Bruguera • (1995) Thomas Muster • (1996) Yevgeny Kafelnikov • (1997) Gustavo Kuerten • (1998) Carlos Moyà • (1999) Andre Agassi • (2000-01) Gustavo Kuerten • (2002) Albert Costa • (2003) Juan Carlos Ferrero • (2004) Gastón Gaudio • (2005-07) Rafael Nadal |
