Samprasfanz

Dec 1, 2008 – Pete defeated Radek Stepanek in their exhibition match at Prague, Czech Republic.

Score: 6-4, 3-6, 10-6 (TB)

Visit the gallery For pictures from the match

Pete defeats Dominic Hrbaty in friendly match at the Slovak Republic on Nov. 29, 2008

Score was 6-3, 7-5.

For pictures, please visit our gallery

November 16, 2008 – To reach Pete Sampras you take a flight to Los Angeles and drive north from the city towards the Santa Monica Mountains and this incredibly posh country club with huge iron gates where you submit your fingerprints and a swab of DNA before being directed to the lobby of the golf club where a secretary awaits.

“Mister Sampras hasn’t arrived yet, please take a seat.” It’s a long way to travel for an interview with a tennis player but one thought sustains you through the hassle and the tedium. This guy was extraordinary. Forget the seven Wimbledon titles, the five US Opens, the two Australian Opens and his seat in the pantheon with the greatest of all time. No, I’m talking about the stuff we never read about, the internal wiring of the man behind the mask.

Take his legendary modesty. The year is 1996 and Sampras has just boarded the first-class cabin on a flight from Los Angeles to Tampa when the baseball player Barry Bonds arrives and is shown the adjoining seat. Bonds glances at Sampras but does not recognise the world No1 tennis player. He is accompanied by a friend who has been allotted the seat behind. “If this kid gets out you can move here,” Bonds announces, glaring at Sampras. The “kid” moves without saying a word.

Take his fear of communal showers.

The year is 1991 and Sampras is in Paris preparing for the French Open on the manicured clay of Roland Garros. Training has ended for the day. He discards his sweat-stained kit, takes a towel and heads for the showers where – nom de dieu! — a French player is relieving himself on the tiles! Sampras is disgusted and traumatised. He changes quickly, returns to his hotel and avoids showering in changing rooms for the rest of his career.

Take his neurotic sleeping habits.

The year is 2001

October 29, 2008

GRAND RAPIDS — The view from just over a courtside railing looked to be exceptional for sixth- grade classmates Josie Evert and Parker Chuba on Tuesday night at Van Andel Arena.

But when tennis pro Jim Courier stopped the Miracle Match exhibition against Pete Sampras and walked over to their kneeling position in the court’s corner, the two tennis buddies knew their vantage point had come at a high price.

“He leaned over and saw our taco chips, and then he grabbed one and ate it,” Evert said. “He came back and got another one. I guess we’re going to have to buy some more.”

The antic was one of many the two retired tennis superstars used to entertain the estimated crowd of 4,000.

While Courier, 38, a two-time French Open and Australian Open champion, provided the more light-hearted approach, Sampras, 39, who won a record 14 Grand Slam titles, showed a competitive fire, finishing two games with three consecutive ace en route to a 6-4, 6-2 win.

The event raised money for the Miracle Match Foundation, established in 1997 by local tennis pro Bill Przybysz as he began his recovery from Acute Monocytic Leukemia.

Przybysz’s contacts in the tennis world has produced such national events as this year’s five-city stop Sampras-Courier tour and provided financial support and community visibility for those suffering from similar stem cell-related blood diseases.

Sampras appeared to be the star of the show.

“When (Sampras’) picture came out on the Wheaties box, I bought three of them for our kids, and they thought I was crazy,” said Leslie Sukup, who attended the event with husband Dave and daughter Laura.

But it was Laura, 27, who had her Wheaties box with her at a private clinic with Sampras on Tuesday afternoon for his autograph.

“I was like a little kid,” she said after Tuesday’s exhibition. “He hit one shot to me and I hit it back. It was great.”

Others got a chance to hit with seven-time Wimbledon winner. When Courier was forced to take a break because of back spasms, Sampras invited the student-ballrunners to hit with him in front of a cheering crowd.

“It was amazing,” said Ellen Silver, 15, who won a point against Sampras when she hammered a hanging lob shot back across the net. “He was so nice. Every time we threw him a ball during the match, he said ‘Thank you.’ “

Source: Michigan Live

October 26, 2008
The Grand Rapids Press

GRAND RAPIDS — When he ruled the tennis world, Pete Sampras never cared about seeing his newspaper photo on the first day of a tournament. But he certainly wanted to see it on the tournament’s last day — and then only as an indication that he had accomplished his goal.

“I didn’t play for the limelight or the money, my only goal was to be the best,” said the retired winner of a record 14 Grand Slam professional titles by phone from his California home last week. “In tennis, you can’t hide behind a teammate or a coach. It’s only the great players who, if they’re not playing well, can regroup and play out of it.”

Sampras, who retired from the sport in 2002 as the only player to hold the world’s No. 1 ranking for six consecutive years, hopes to show that drive Tuesday when he’ll face Jim Courier on the fifth stop of the 2008 Miracle Match Charity Tennis Event at Van Andel Arena.

Proceeds from the event will benefit the Miracle Match Foundation, a fundraising effort to assist patients with stem cell related diseases founded in 1997 by local tennis pro Bill Przybysz, who is recovering from acute monocytic leukemia (AML).

Sampras has proven to be a worthy ambassador.

“I always looked up to athletes who showed respect to their opponents and to their game,” said Sampras, 39, who counts past tennis legends Rod Laver and Ken Rosewell as early examples. “They were untouchables — they let their game do their talking. I could have caused controversy but I always felt that it would take away from my drive to be the best.”

“That’s just the way I see it and I feel there’s still room today for quiet, humble champions.”

Sampras counts golfer Tiger Woods, former basketball star Michael Jordan, and Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning in that group today and assumes that they, too, will handle retirement with equal grace because of the respect with which they bring to their sports.

“Some guys just get bored and miss the excitement,” is how Sampras views the comeback attempts made by any number of professional stars like bicycler Lance Armstrong, NFL quarterback Brett Favre, and even Jordan himself. “For me, I just needed a nice balance between family and golf and playing in charity events like this one.”

Finding a balance between family, golf and playing charity events are It’s part of the message that Sampras delivers in his book “A Champion’s Mind,” issued in June. But he never intended the book or his life to be a formula for personal advice.

“I just put it all out there in an open and honest way to tell the story of what it took for me to be a champion, but it’s not a tell-all” said Sampras of his book “A Champion’s Mind.” “I wanted a book that helps people in any pursuit to be their best.” That’s why Przybysz is so pleased to have Sampras as a part of this year’s Miracle Match tour.

“Events like this give area tennis clubs and professionals a chance to grow the sport with Pete as an example,” said Przybysz.

Source: Michigan Live