Petr Korda
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Petr Korda (born 23 January 1968) is a Czech former professional
tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...
player. He won the 1998 Australian Open and was runner-up at the
1992 French Open The 1992 French Open was a tennis tournament that took place on the outdoor clay courts at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France. The tournament was held from 25 May until 7 June. It was the 96th staging of the French Open, and the second Grand ...
, reaching a career-high ranking of No. 2 in February 1998. Korda tested positive for doping in July 1998 at
Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * ...
, and was banned from September 1999 for 12 months, but he retired shortly before the ban.


Tennis career


Juniors

He first came to the tennis world's attention as a promising junior player. In 1985, he partnered with fellow Czech
Cyril Suk Cyril Suk III (born 29 January 1967) is a former professional tennis player. A doubles specialist, Suk won five Grand Slam titles, one men's doubles and four Grand Slam mixed doubles titles and 32 ATP Tour doubles titles during his career. Ea ...
to win the boys' doubles title at the French Open. Korda and Suk ranked the joint-World No. 1 junior doubles players that year. Junior Slam results: *Australian Open: - *French Open: 3R (
1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal ente ...
) *Wimbledon: QF (
1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal ente ...
) *US Open: QF (
1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal ente ...
)


Professional career

Korda turned professional in 1987. He won his first career doubles title in 1988, and his first top-level singles title in 1991. Korda was involved in four
Grand Slam Grand Slam most often refers to: * Grand Slam (tennis), one player or pair winning all four major annual tournaments, or the tournaments themselves Grand Slam or Grand slam may also refer to: Games and sports * Grand slam, winning category te ...
finals during his career – two in singles and two in doubles. Korda also was known for the "Scissors Kick" which he would do at midcourt after winning matches. In 1990, Korda and
Goran Ivanišević Goran Ivanišević (; born 13 September 1971) is a Croatian former professional tennis player and current coach. He is the only player to win a Wimbledon singles title as a wildcard. He achieved this in 2001 while ranked world No. 125, after ...
finished runners-up in the men's doubles at the French Open, and as a result, Korda reached his career-high doubles ranking of world No. 10. In 1992, he rose to the men's singles final at the French Open beating Christian Bergström,
Shuzo Matsuoka is a retired Japanese professional tennis player, sports commentator, and entertainer. A former Wimbledon quarter-finalist, Matsuoka won one singles title during his career, in Seoul in 1992. In the same year, he reached a career-high rankin ...
,
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,
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,
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and
Henri Leconte Henri Leconte (born 4 July 1963) is a French former professional tennis player. He reached the men's singles final at the French Open in 1988, won the French Open men's doubles title in 1984, and helped France win the Davis Cup in 1991. Leconte ...
, before he was defeated in straight sets by defending champion
Jim Courier James Spencer "Jim" Courier (born August 17, 1970) is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. He won four major singles titles, two at the French Open and two at the Australian Open. He was the youngest man to reach the singles finals of ...
7–5, 6–2, 6–1. A highlight of Korda's career include winning the
Grand Slam Cup The Grand Slam Cup was a tennis tournament held annually at the Olympiahalle in Munich, Germany from 1990 through 1999. The event was organized by the International Tennis Federation (ITF), which invited the best-performing players in the year's ...
in 1993, with five-set wins in the semifinal and final over
Pete Sampras Petros "Pete" Sampras ( el, Πέτρος Σάμπρας; born August 12, 1971) is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. His professional career began in 1988 and ended at the 2002 US Open, which he won, defeating longtime rival Andre ...
and
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, the number 1 and 2 tennis players in the world at that time. Korda also was a part of the Czech Republic's team which won the
Hopman Cup The Hopman Cup is an international eight-team indoor hardcourt tennis tournament that played mixed-gender teams on a country-by-country basis.It was held in Perth, Western Australia each year from 1989 to 2019, before being replaced on the calen ...
in 1994. In 1996 he teamed-up with Stefan Edberg to win the men's doubles title at the Australian Open. He also upset the defending champion,
Pete Sampras Petros "Pete" Sampras ( el, Πέτρος Σάμπρας; born August 12, 1971) is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. His professional career began in 1988 and ended at the 2002 US Open, which he won, defeating longtime rival Andre ...
, in five sets in the fourth round of the 1997 US Open. The crowning moment of Korda's career came in 1998, when he defeated
Albert Portas Albert Portas Soy (, ; born 15 November 1973) is a Spanish former professional tennis player. Career Portas turned professional in 1994. He reached his career-high singles ranking of World No. 19 in October 2001. His only top-level singles tit ...
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,
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, Cédric Pioline,
Jonas Björkman Jonas Lars Björkman (; born 23 March 1972) is a Swedish former professional tennis player. He is a former world No. 1 in doubles, and also a former world No. 4 in singles. Björkman retired from professional tennis after competing at the 2008 T ...
and
Karol Kučera Karol Kučera (born 4 March 1974) is a retired ATP professional male tennis player from Slovakia. He achieved a career-high singles ranking of World No. 6 in September 1998, reaching the semi-finals of the Australian Open the same year. In 2 ...
to face
Marcelo Ríos Marcelo Andrés Ríos Mayorga (; born 26 December 1975) is a Chilean former world No. 1 tennis player. Nicknamed ''"El Chino"'' ("The Chinese") and ''"El zurdo de Vitacura"'' ("The Lefty from Vitacura"), he became the first Latin American play ...
in the men's singles final at the Australian Open. Korda dominated the match from start to finish by winning in straight sets 6–2, 6–2, 6–2 and claimed his first Grand Slam singles title in just 1 hour and 25 minutes. The win propelled him to his career-high singles ranking of World No. 2. At four tournaments in 1998, Korda had the world No. 1 ranking in his sights, but he lost to
Karol Kučera Karol Kučera (born 4 March 1974) is a retired ATP professional male tennis player from Slovakia. He achieved a career-high singles ranking of World No. 6 in September 1998, reaching the semi-finals of the Australian Open the same year. In 2 ...
in Antwerp,
Marcelo Ríos Marcelo Andrés Ríos Mayorga (; born 26 December 1975) is a Chilean former world No. 1 tennis player. Nicknamed ''"El Chino"'' ("The Chinese") and ''"El zurdo de Vitacura"'' ("The Lefty from Vitacura"), he became the first Latin American play ...
at Indian Wells,
Tim Henman Timothy Henry Henman (born 6 September 1974) is a British former professional tennis player. Henman played a serve-and-volley style of tennis. He was the first British man to reach the singles semifinals of Wimbledon since Roger Taylor in th ...
in Miami and Richard Krajicek in Monte Carlo.


Suspension and retirement

Following his quarterfinal match against
Tim Henman Timothy Henry Henman (born 6 September 1974) is a British former professional tennis player. Henman played a serve-and-volley style of tennis. He was the first British man to reach the singles semifinals of Wimbledon since Roger Taylor in th ...
at the Wimbledon 1998, Korda tested positive for the banned steroid
nandrolone Nandrolone, also known as 19-nortestosterone, is an androgen and anabolic steroid (AAS) which is used in the form of esters such as nandrolone decanoate (brand name Deca-Durabolin) and nandrolone phenylpropionate (brand name Durabolin). Nandrolon ...
. This came to light in December 1998 when the appeals board of the
International Tennis Federation The International Tennis Federation (ITF) is the governing body of world tennis, wheelchair tennis, and beach tennis. It was founded in 1913 as the International Lawn Tennis Federation by twelve national tennis associations. As of 2016, there a ...
(ITF) accepted his denial of intent and agreed not to ban him, instead merely withholding his Wimbledon prize money and ranking points. The ensuing controversy caused the ITF to launch an appeal against its own decision at the
Court of Arbitration for Sport The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS; french: Tribunal arbitral du sport, ''TAS'') is an international body established in 1984 to settle disputes related to sport through arbitration. Its headquarters are in Lausanne, Switzerland and its c ...
(CAS). In January 1999 Korda obtained a ruling in the
High Court of England and Wales The High Court of Justice in London, known properly as His Majesty's High Court of Justice in England, together with the Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, are the Senior Courts of England and Wales. Its name is abbreviated as EWHC (England ...
that the ITF could not appeal, but the High Court ruling was overturned by the Court of Appeal. In July 1999 the CAS allowed the ITF appeal and on 1 September 1999 the ITF banned Korda for 12 months and stripped him of all prize money and ranking points since the failed test. Before the ban, Korda had already announced his retirement, after losing to Danny Sapsford and failing to qualify for Wimbledon 1999. However, after his ban he competed in Czech
ATP Challenger Tour The ATP Challenger Tour, known until the end of 2008 as the ATP Challenger Series, is a series of international men's professional tennis tournaments. The Challenger Tour events are the second-highest tier of tennis competition, behind the ATP T ...
events: the
Prague Open In tennis, Prague Open may refer to: * Prague Open (1987–1999) * ATP Prague Open * WTA Prague Open * Sparta Prague Open Challenger The Sparta Prague Open Challenger is a professional tennis tournament played on Tennis court#Clay courts, clay cou ...
(singles and doubles) in December 2000 and the Czech Open (doubles) in 2001 and 2005.


Personal life

Korda married
Regina Rajchrtová Regina Rajchrtová, married Kordová (5 February 1968) is a former tennis player from Czechoslovakia who competed for her native country at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul. On 1 April 1991 she reached a career world ranking high of 26. Persona ...
, a former professional tennis player from Czechoslovakia. They have three children, the oldest of whom, Jessica, was born on 27 February 1993; she is a professional golfer, and finished 19th in the 2008
U.S. Women's Open The U.S. Women's Open, one of 15 national golf championships conducted by the United States Golf Association (USGA), is the oldest of the LPGA Tour's five major championships, which includes the Chevron Championship, Women's PGA Championship, W ...
as a 15-year-old, with Korda as her caddy. At the 2013 U.S. Women's Open, Petr caddied for another of their daughters,
Nelly Cornell Iral Haynes Jr. (born November 2, 1974), better known by his stage name Nelly, is an American rapper, singer, actor and entrepreneur. He embarked on his music career with the hip hop group St. Lunatics in 1993 and signed to Universal ...
, who was 14 years old at the time and the youngest player in the tournament. As of March 2022, Nelly was #2 ranked woman golfer in the world and has been ranked #1. His son, Sebastian, is also a tennis player and was the top-ranked junior in the world while representing the United States.http://www.itftennis.com/juniors/players/player/profile.aspx?PlayerID=100291609 Sebastian won the junior boys’ Australian Open title in 2018.


Grand Slam finals


Singles: 2 (1 title, 1 runner-up)


Doubles: 2 (1 title, 1 runner-up)


ATP career finals


Singles: 27 (10 titles, 17 runners-up)


Doubles: 24 (10 titles, 14 runners-up)


Performance timelines


Singles


Doubles


Top 10 wins


References


External links

* * *
Sunday Times article 30 August, 2009
{{DEFAULTSORT:Korda, Petr 1968 births Living people Australian Open (tennis) champions Czech expatriates in Monaco Czech male tennis players Czech sportspeople in doping cases Czechoslovak male tennis players Doping cases in tennis French Open junior champions Hopman Cup competitors People from Monte Carlo Tennis players from Prague Wimbledon junior champions Grand Slam (tennis) champions in men's singles Grand Slam (tennis) champions in men's doubles Grand Slam (tennis) champions in boys' doubles Masters tennis players