Nick Bollettieri (†91) loved Prague and had 8 wives. What made him special?
Gone is the tennis guru who oozed temperament and charisma. Founder of the most famous academy, coach of a number of world leaders. Nick Bollettieri died a week ago at the age of 91. Although the tennis Hall of Famer never became a professional player, he was trusted by stars such as Andre Aggasi and Serena Williams. “Nick was a tennis magician and a very strong personality,” former coach Jan Kukal recalled of the legend. What was the uniqueness of the American who liked to visit the Czech Republic?
Even before the official confirmation of the death of the famous coach, his former wards expressed themselves on social networks. “Our dear friend Nick Bollettieri has left us. He gave so many people a chance to live their dream. He showed us all how to live life to the fullest. Thanks, Nick,” said Andre Agassi, former world number one and one of the most popular tennis players in history. “Thank you for your time, your knowledge, wisdom, dedication, expertise, willingness to share knowledge and your personal interest in my career. You were a dreamer and a maverick, a pioneer of our sport. You were unique,” wrote the German Tommy Haas, who thanks to Bollettieri reached second place in the world rankings.
A self-taught tennis player who was born in New York to a family of Italian immigrants, he has been a coach since the 1950s. Never a professional player, he founded an academy in Bradenton in 1978. “He became a unique inspiration for all dads all over the world, that even a non-tennis player can have such huge successes,” pointed out Jan Kukal. The former player and successful coach met personally with the head of the academy. “He was one of the first to recognize that tennis can be learned through hard work – unlike golf, for example. He had a flair for players, and his academy was a role model for others,” described Kukal. Bollettieri’s only competitor in terms of coaching success was Australian Harry Hopman.
The foundation of the famous Florida academy was discipline. Here, Bollettieri had a taste under his skin thanks to the army, where he worked as a paratrooper. “He was in fantastic physical shape and especially loved tennis. In the morning, it was first in action, and in the evening, when it got dark, it revolved around the events on the courts,” expert Kukal highlighted the strong stands of the coaching legend. Bollettieri himself liked to boast about his lifestyle. “I get up at a quarter to five. At a quarter to six I’m already at the academy, I’m practicing with tires, I’m swimming, I’m doing three hundred flip-flops a day. I eat healthily, I’ll have a glass of wine in the evening,” he told the newspaper Sport some time ago. In his academy, training was done in three phases. Six hours of tennis in two stages, then it was time for conditioning drills.
The running of the tennis academy in Bradenton was ensured by a significant part of the money of wealthy families. “These parents had unruly children who were there for discipline,” observed Jan Kukal. On the contrary, Bollettieri himself financially supported the best players, led by Monika Selešová, Andre Agassi or Pete Sampras. “Not only that they played there for free, but he arranged housing for them. When Sharapova arrived there, she only had two rackets with her.” The Russian tennis star became one of Bollettieri’s most popular clients. “My Maria will always be my Maria. Hello, what is being forgotten? Without Serena and Maria, the interest in women’s tennis would be halved,” the famous American expert told Sport.
Bollettieri liked to describe himself more as a psychologist and motivator than an actual coach. When Martina Hingisová’s mother came to him with a request to get her daughter excited about tennis again, they went to a restaurant. He convinced the Swiss woman to travel to the Tournament of Champions, which she eventually won. “Martina thanked me: Nick, you helped me understand that I’m lucky as hell to play tennis. Those are the things I can do,” Bollettieri recalled with a smile. The American willingly stood up for Karolína Plíšková when she was under pressure from critics as world number one. “That number 1 means she has to be damn good,” he declared. Former Slovak number one Daniela Hantuchová has now confided in a strong memory. “He believed in my tennis game more than I believed in myself. That shocked me from such a personality and one of the greatest greats.”
The tennis guru liked to go to the Czech Republic. “I love the tennis club in Zbraslav. Once there I met the mayoress, who wanted to get to know me. I tell her: It suits you very well! Do you know I’m looking for my ninth wife? And she replied: I’m not engaged!” he laughed in one of the interviews for the daily Sport. And how is it that a man with a great estimation of athletes has changed so many wives? “I am exceptional in everything, including eight women. I find one marriage a bit boring, so I tried eight times. I changed the basic idea – I was marrying them instead of dating them,” Bollettieri recounted with amusement.
Andre Agassi (USA)
Jim Courier (USA)
Boris Becker (German)
Serena Williams (USA)
Venus Williams (USA)
Maria Sharapova (Russia)
Martina Hingis (Switzerland)
Monica Selešová (USA)
Anna Kournikova (Russian)
born: 7/31/1931 in Pelham, New York
died: 12/4/2022 (age 91) in Bradenton, Florida
career: After high school, he served in the military and later studied and did not finish law school at the University of Miami. He was a self-taught tennis player. He has been teaching tennis since 1956. In 1978, he founded a well-known academy in Bradenton, Florida, which was one of the first major tennis centers in the USA. Nine years later, she was sold by the IMG source, but she continued to work at the academy.