More Role Models Should Be Like Her
Adrian Wojnarowski was right-on in his article on Lindsey Davenport, arguably one of the most underrated tennis champions in women’s tennis. Wojnarowski makes the case that Davenport is great not just for her numerous achievements –4 Grand Slams, Olympic gold medal, world’s #1 in singles and doubles, etc.– but for her relatively balanced upbringing and down-to-Earth, almost zen-like approach to the sport. To quote:
"When people are young, they say, ‘They’re going to be great,’ Davenport once said. "No one ever said anything about me. I was never a prodigy. I was never going to be any good. … No one ever said when I was growing up I was ever going to be any good or get to a Grand Slam final. I wasn’t expected to do anything. I’m not the most unbelievable athlete.
"I’m not anything."
In particular, I was amused by the not-so-hidden dig at one particular tennis coach (*coughbollettieri*):
The Davenports never wanted their daughter raised by some whack-job tennis coach far from home. They instilled the values of confidence and belief in her, not leaving it to some raving lunatic with sun-dried skin and an oversized racket. And it shows.
As a sidenote, I saw Davenport play last summer in New Haven, Conn. Four things:
- She’s tall!
- She moves a lot faster than she looks on TV
- She’s very polite on camera
- She crrunks the ball, easily as hard as any guy on the tour.
