Famous for Wimbledon, Novotna is dead at 49
Jana Novotna, the Czech tennis star who famously cried on the Duchess of Kent’s shoulder after losing a Wimbledon singles final in 1993 and then triumphed at the same tournament five years later, has died. She was 49.
Novotna died in her native Czech Republic on Sunday, the Women’s Tennis Association said in a statement. She had breast cancer.
She won 17 Grand Slam titles, 16 of them in doubles and mixed doubles, as well as three Olympic medals. But it was her singles career that came to define her.
Novotna had sought for years to dominate the lawn at Wimbledon. In 1993, she appeared to be on the verge of just such a victory. Up 4-1 in the final set against Steffi Graf, Novotna lost the match, 7-6 (8-6), 1-6, 6-4.
As the trophies were being presented, the Czech tennis player cried on the Duchess of Kent’s shoulder.
“Jana, I believe that you will do it, don’t worry,” the royal told her, according to Novotna’s telling of the story. Five years later, she did. Novotna, then 29, defeated Nathalie Tauziat of France, 6-4, 7-6 (7-2), to lift the Wimbledon singles trophy for the first — and only — time.
“Jana was an inspiration both on and off the court to anyone who had the opportunity to know her,” said Steve Simon, WTA’s chief executive. “Her star will always shine brightly in the history of the WTA.”
Novotna turned professional in 1987 and initially drew attention as a doubles player. She began to make a name for herself as a singles player in 1990 — eight years before she won the women’s singles title at Wimbledon.
Known for her serve-and-volley game, she was ranked 13th among women players by 1990. By 1993, she was facing off with Graf in the Wimbledon finals. She returned to the tournament finale in 1997 but lost to Martina Hingis of Switzerland.
The following year, she beat Venus Williams in the quarterfinal and exacted some measure of revenge by defeating Hingis in the semifinal. By beating Tauziat, she became the oldest firsttime female Grand Slam champion in the Open era. (That record stood until 2010, when Francesca Schiavone of Italy won the French Open less than three weeks before her 30th birthday.)
Novotna reached the final of the Australian Open once and appeared in the semifinals of the French Open and the U.S. Open, but Wimbledon was her only Grand Slam singles victory.
She retired with 100 tournament titles — 76 in doubles and 24 in singles.
Novotna retired from professional tennis in 1999 and was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2005.
Her death sparked a strong reaction in the Czech Republic, where former coaches, competitors and sporting officials voiced tributes.
“When she lost to Steffi Graf at Wimbledon in 1993, I was crying,” said Jan Kodes, a fellow Czech tennis player who won three Grand Slams — including one Wimbledon title — in the 1970s. “She came to me and said, ‘Mr. Kodes, don’t cry, I will win it here one day anyhow.’”
“And she did five years later,” Kodes said, in remarks published by the Czech news website Idnes. “Jana certainly was a player who became a role model for many young girls.”
Ivo Kaderka, president of the Czech Tennis Association, described Novotna as a domestic tennis legend whose impact extended beyond the sport.