Nevertheless, there is a ray of hope
Becker mourns the third ex-coach in two years
Coaches are important building blocks in successful athletes’ careers. Even after they end, many athletes stay connected to them. Now ex-tennis star Boris Becker has to say goodbye to the third ex-coach within a short time.
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Not an easy time for Boris Becker.
Last Sunday, Nick Bollettieri († 91), one of the greatest tennis icons, died. His life was restless. “I don’t necessarily wish this mentality on others because you never get any rest,” Bollettieri once said in an interview with “Spiegel”. “But I love adventure.”
Not only did he do it privately – he was married eight times and has seven children – but also on the tennis court. In his academy, founded in 1978, he formed numerous stars. His methods were often criticized, but success proved him right. He worked with ten world number ones, including Martina Hingis (42), Andre Agassi (52) and Boris Becker (55).
Sad news behind bars
Bollettieri traveled with the German from 1993 to 1995. They didn’t celebrate the big successes together. Becker fluctuated between 3rd and 14th place in the world rankings and only reached one Grand Slam final with Wimbledon in 1995.
Nevertheless, Becker, who was sentenced to two and a half years in prison for bankruptcy offenses last April and has been behind bars ever since, must have been shocked by the news of Bollettieri’s death. With him he loses his third ex-coach within two years. In August 2021, Mike DePalmer († 59), with whom he worked after Bollettieri and won the Australian Open for the second time in 1996, died.
At the beginning of January 2021, Becker mourned the loss of an ex-coach. Like DePalmer, Bob Brett († 67) succumbed to cancer. With him, Becker not only won Wimbledon and the US Open in 1989, but also the Australian Open in 1991 and conquered the top of the world rankings for the first time.
At home for Christmas?
Now Becker mourns a third man who was part of his successful career. And that shortly after he had to celebrate his 55th birthday without family and friends in British Huntercombe prison in Oxfordshire on November 22nd. Not an easy time for him.
But there should be a glimmer of hope. In mid-November, rumors circulated in the British media that he would be deported to Germany before Christmas. Now, according to “Mirror”, it should be ready next week. The reason? Becker is said to have been admitted to an accelerated procedure in which foreign prisoners are released to their homeland. This is intended to relieve British prisons and save money.
The deportation has not yet been officially confirmed. Should it come to that, Becker would be a free man by Christmas. Because he would no longer have to serve the remaining sentence – he has only served eight months – in Germany. (bir)