Gabriela Sabatini

Gabriela Sabatini is a shy and introverted person who keeps her personal life guarded. She is very close to her family, especially her nieces. She is not married.

She has been actively involved in campaigns for UNICEF, UNESCO and the Special Olympics, and has worked with organizations to help children and the poor.

Gabriela Beatriz Sabatini was born on 16 May 1970, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, to Osvaldo and Beatriz Garofalo Sabatini. She has an elder brother.

She grew up watching her father and brother play tennis and was attracted towards the sport. As a six year old she began practicing by herself by hitting the ball against the wall. Her father noticed her passion and had her enrolled for professional coaching.

She proved to be a naturally skilled player and by the age of ten was ranked No. 1 in her country in the 12-and-under division. With age she continued to improve and consistently held on to her No. 1 ranking as she moved up the age groups. At 13, she became the youngest player to win the Orange Bowl in Florida.

She gained international prominence in 1984 when she won seven of the eight junior tournaments she entered, including the French Open girls' singles, and was ranked the World No. 1 junior player that year.

In 1985, she reached the semifinals at the French Open, where she lost to Chris Evert. Aged 15 years and three weeks, Sabatini became one of the youngest-ever players to reach the semifinals of the tournament.

She reached her first Grand Slam singles final at the US Open in 1988 where she faced Steffi Graf who was in great form that year having already won the three previous Grand Slam singles events. Sabatini lost to Graf.

Sabatini carried Argentina’s flag in the opening ceremony at the 1988 Summer Olympics held in Seoul and went on to win the silver medal in the women's singles competition. The same year she teamed up with Steffi Graf to win the women's doubles title at Wimbledon. She also won 1988's year-end WTA Tour Championships.

Her career underwent a temporary slump in 1989 when she failed to win any major titles. After losing the 1990 French Open, she hired Carlos Kimayr, a top-ranked Brazilian player, as her coach. Under his guidance she bounced back with better physical endurance and mental strength.

In 2001, she won the Diamond Konex Award as the most relevant Sportsman of the decade in Argentina.

Sabatini was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2006. The same year, she also won the IOC Women and Sport Trophy.