Issue link: http://itf.uberflip.com/i/117483
bows out Esther ESTHER VERGEER The peerless Esther Vergeer retired in February, calling time on the most illustrious career in tennis and one of the longest winning streaks in sporting history. T he Dutch star finished on a high, her last competitive outing being her double gold-medal-winning trip to London last September for the Paralympics. Her dual triumphs there handed Vergeer her sixth and seventh Paralympic gold medals, and her total haul of eight medals made her the most successful tennis Paralympian in history. Shortly before announcing her retirement, the 31-year-old celebrated ten unbeaten years on the NEC Wheelchair Tennis Tour. In a career littered with extraordinary statistics, the most stunning was her 470-match winning streak. After falling to Australian Daniela di Toro in Sydney on 30 January 2003, Vergeer didn���t lose another singles match. In the decade that followed she won 120 successive tournaments, beat 73 different opponents, won 95 matches 60 60, and dropped just 18 sets. She faced only one match point, against fellow countrywoman Korie Homan in the women���s gold medal match at Beijing 2008. Only one professional athlete is known to have had more successive victories than Vergeer: squash player Jahangir Khan of Pakistan won 555 consecutive matches, although he was only undefeated for five-and-a-half years from 1981 to 1986. At the Grand Slam tournaments Vergeer captured 21 singles and 23 doubles crowns. She amassed a total of 169 singles titles and 136 doubles titles, and was part of the Netherlands team that won the BNP Paribas World Team Cup on 12 occasions. Vergeer first became world No. 1 in 1999, and held the top ranking continuously from 2 October 2000 to 21 January 2013. She has been named ITF Wheelchair World Champion for the last 13 years. ���I took a time-out since London and found out that on the court there are no challenges left, but outside it there are plenty,��� said Vergeer, who took up wheelchair tennis at the age of 12 after surgery on her spinal cord went wrong. ���I���m proud of what I have achieved in my career and at the same time so thankful to all the people that helped me to persevere.��� ���It���s still hard (retiring) and I���ve got to get used to it. It felt like an addiction, to get everything out of yourself each and every day, the kick of winning in three sets, winning Paralympic titles. But going on would not add more to my career. I met so many people and situations that inspired me to mean something to others besides [on] the court.��� She plans to work with disabled children around the world and give them the opportunity to play sport through her Esther Vergeer Foundation. ITF President Francesco Ricci Bitti led the plaudits for a true sporting hero. ���Esther Vergeer is a tremendous ambassador not only for tennis but also for disability sports. She is an inspiration to many. Wheelchair tennis owes her a huge debt of gratitude for her professionalism and her quality as a player.��� www.itftennis.com With one of her many World Champion trophies Vergeer won the season-ending NEC Masters 14 times In her last tournament at London 2012 ITFWORLD SPRING 2013 7