PERSONAL
Alighting Date: 2/18/1974
Deplaning Site: Sochi, Russia
Residence: Sochi, Russia
Height: 6'3'' (190 cm)
Weight: 185 lbs (84 kg)
Plays: Right-handed
Turned Pro: 1992
Began playing tennis at age six
Father, Aleksandre, is a high school volleyball coach, and mother, Valentina
Enjoys fishing in the Black Sea, watching soccer (Spartak Moscow fan), basketball and hockey (Detroit Red Wings fan), and an avid golfer (14 handicap)
Has a 43-25 career Davis Cup record (31-14 in singles) in 26 ties since 1993
Named ATP Most Improved Player of the Year in 1994 after climbing from No. 104 previous year to 11
An avid New York Yankees fan (since 1996) and tries to catch a game when in town during US Open
On May 4, 1999, one day after officially becoming No. 1, President Boris Yeltsin sent a telegram, saying, "For the first time in the 122-year history of tennis, a Russian sportsman has become the world's top player. The victory is a great achievement for our sport. As a person who plays tennis, I understand how difficult it is to achieve such a result."
His Olympic gold medal was presented to him by IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch
After winning his fifth-straight title in Moscow, donated his first prize of $137,000 to families of victims in Oct. 4, 2001 Russian plane crash in Black Sea, near his hometown of Sochi
Daughter, Aleysa (born Oct. 23, 1998).
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS
1993-Reached first tour QF in Barcelona (d. Stich, first Top 10 win)
1994-In Adelaide, defeated Volkov in first all-Russian final in Open Era
Won titles in Copenhagen and Long Island
Reached Hamburg final
Helped his country to first Davis Cup final with 7-1 singles mark
Won four doubles titles
1995-The only player on tour to win four singles and four doubles titles
The first Russian ever to finish in Top 10 and first player since E. Sanchez in 1990 to finish in Top 10 in singles and doubles
Helped his country to Davis Cup final vs. U.S. for second consecutive year, where Russians lost 3-2
Won four titles
Beat No. 1 Agassi in Roland Garros QF before losing to eventual champion Muster in first Slam SF
Repeated title in Long Island (d. Siemerink)
The first Russian to qualify for the ATP Tour World Championship
In doubles, won four titles with three partners
1996-Became first player on tour to finish in the Top 5 in singles and doubles since John McEnroe in 1989
Tied a career-best with four singles titles (in a tour-high 10 finals) and won a career-high five doubles titles (in eight finals)
Made biggest breakthrough by winning singles (d. Stich) and doubles titles (w/Vacek) at Roland Garros
Became first Russian to win a Grand Slam title and first player to win both titles in Paris since Ken Rosewall in 1968
Became first player to compete in more than 100 singles matches in consecutive seasons since Lendl in 1981-82
Only player during year to reach singles finals on four surfaces (carpet, clay, hard, grass)
1997-Captured titles on three different surfaces: in Halle (grass), New Haven (hard) and Moscow (carpet)
Closed season by reaching final of ATP Tour World Championship (l. to Sampras)
Missed three months of season after fracturing a finger on his right hand during a gym workout on Jan. 9
Won Grand Slam doubles titles at French and US Opens (w/Vacek)
1998-Won three singles titles and finalist in three others while winning two doubles titles
Led tour in total matches played (150)
Missed first month of action due to a skiing accident on Dec. 28, '97 in Austria where he suffered left knee injury
1999-Finished a year-end best No. 2, highlighted by becoming No. 1 on ATP Rankings in May and capturing his second career Grand Slam title at Australian Open (d. Enqvist)
Won three titles and at least 55 matches for sixth consecutive season and led circuit in total matches played (136) for fifth time in last six years
Took over No. 1 on May 3 and held position for six weeks
On July 26, began first of 16 consecutive weeks played in Kitzbuehel and advanced to SF
Following week, reached final at TMS Montreal (l. to Johansson)
During five-tournament hard court stretch, compiled an 18-5 mark with final in Washington and SF at US Open (l. to Agassi)
Closed regular season by winning his third straight Moscow title (d. B. Black)
2000-Played in most singles and doubles matches (156)
Played in over 100 singles matches for third time (101) in career
Reached his third career Grand Slam final at Australian Open (l. to Agassi) and final at London-indoor (l. to Rosset)
Won gold medal in singles at Sydney Olympics with five-set victory over Haas
Helped his country to its first ATP World Team Champ. final in Dusseldorf (l. to Slovak Republic
Reached QF at Roland Garros (l. to eventual champion Kuerten in fifth set)
Collected title in Moscow for fourth consecutive year (d. Prinosil), had his 23-match winning streak in Russian tournaments come to an end with SF loss to Hrbaty in St. Petersburg and reached final in Stockholm (l. to Johansson)
In doubles, won his 20th career title at TMS Monte Carlo (w/W. Ferreira)
Earned a career-high $3,755,599
2001-Played in most singles and doubles matches (142) for seventh time in eight years
Won two ATP titles in three finals and extended his streak of having won at least one title for eight straight years
Also compiled consistent Grand Slam results by reaching QF or better in three of four tournaments for second time in his career (1995)
At ATP World Team Championship in Dusseldorf led his country to final (l. to Australia) with three match wins
Continued success at Roland Garros with QF, losing to eventual champion Kuerten for second straight yearà Advanced to SF at Flushing Meadows (d. Kuerten in QF, l. to Hewitt), reached final in Tashkent (l. to Safin), won his fifth straight title in Moscow (d. Kiefer) and reached final at TMS Paris (l. to Grosjean)
Closed season by reaching SF at Tennis Masters Cup in Sydney (l. to Grosjean) after going 3-0 in round-robin play
Won an ATP-best 29 indoor matches (29-8) and went 13-0 vs. left-handed players
Finished No. 3 in aces with a career-high 669
Compiled a personal-best 44-17 record on hard courts.
2002-The veteran Russian captured two ATP singles titles and won his fourth Grand Slam doubles crown during an up-and-down campaign
He extended his streak of having won at least one singles and doubles title for nine straight years, longest active on tour
He played well for his country, leading Russia to its first Davis Cup title (d. France 3-2) and ATP World Team Championship runner-up showing in Dusseldorf (l. to Argentina)
Finished at No. 27, his lowest year-end mark since 1993
His 39 match wins was also his fewest since '93
Struggled in first five months of season with a 17-18 record, including a 4-12 mark on clay
Began turnaround with grass court title in Halle (d. Kiefer) and finished campaign by winning 22 of his final 33 matches
In September, won Tashkent for first time (d. Voltchkov in F) despite playing with a dislocated fourth finger in left hand
Followed with 8-6 in fifth set victory (saved two match points) over Gaudio in Davis Cup SF in Moscow
After winning 4:10 marathon, next day lost a 6:20 doubles battle to Arnold-Nalbandian (w/Safin) in longest doubles match in Davis Cup history (19-17 in fifth)
Had a 3-2 singles mark in Davis Cup play and went 3-0 in five-set matches (17-2 since 1998)
During European indoor circuit, had his Moscow winning streak of 28-straight matches snapped with SF loss to Schalken
Underwent varicose vein surgery on his left leg on Dec. 3 in ZurichàHad records of 22-13 on hard, 7-1 on grass and 6-3 on carpet
In doubles, won his 25th career title (fourth Grand Slam) at Roland Garros (w/Haarhuis)
One of eight players in Open Era to win 25 singles and 25 doubles titles.
2003-Singles Finalist: Milan Semifinalist: Rome TMS, Munich Quarterfinalist: Estoril, Rotterdam Doubles Winner: Indian Wells TMS(w/Ferreira), Washington(w/Sargsian) Finalist: Roland Garros(w/Haarhuis), Stuttgart(w/Ullyett) Semifinalist: Long Island(w/Santoro)