Yvon Petra (; 8 March 1916 – 12 September 1984) was a French male
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 was born in
Cholon, French Indochina.
Petra is best remembered as the last Frenchman to win the
Wimbledon Championships
The Wimbledon Championships, commonly known simply as Wimbledon, is the oldest tennis tournament in the world and is widely regarded as the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, All England Club in ...
men's singles title (in 1946), beating
Geoff Brown in five sets in the final. In doubles, he won the French Championships twice, in 1938 with
Bernard Destremau
Bernard Destremau (; 11 February 1917 – 6 June 2002) was a French tennis player, tank officer, diplomat and politician.
Biography
Born in Paris into a military family, the third son of a WW I cavalry general, his success in accommodating comp ...
, defeating the best pair in the world
Budge-
Mako
, better known by the mononym name Mako (sometimes stylised MAKO), is a Japanese voice actress, singer and a member of the band Bon-Bon Blanco, in which her prominent role is as the maraca player. She has also performed in a Japanese television d ...
, and in 1946 with
Marcel Bernard
Marcel Bernard (; 18 May 1914 – 29 April 1994) was a French tennis player. He is best remembered for having won the French Championships in 1946 (reaching the semifinals a further three times). Bernard initially intended to play only in the dou ...
. In 1938, he won the singles and doubles title at the French Covered Court Championships.
He was a
prisoner of war
A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610.
Belligerents hold prisoners of wa ...
in World War II and after his release won three
Tournoi de France
The ''Tournoi de France'' ( French, 'Tournament of France') was a friendly international football tournament organised by the French Football Federation (FFF) that was held in France. There have been two tournaments: the first in February 1988 a ...
singles titles from 1943 through 1945. He emigrated to the United States and worked as a tennis pro at the Saddle and Cycle Club in Chicago and a country club in Connecticut towards the end of his life. Petra was ranked world No. 4 for 1946 by
A. Wallis Myers
Arthur Wallis Myers (24 July 1878 – 17 June 1939) was an English tennis correspondent, editor, author and player. He was one of the leading tennis journalists of the first half of the 20th century.
Family life
Myers was son of the Rev. John ...
and world No. 8 for 1947 by
Harry Hopman
Henry Christian Hopman Order of the British Empire, CBE (12 August 1906 – 27 December 1985) was an Australian tennis player and coach.
Early life
Harry Hopman was born on 12 August 1906 in Glebe, New South Wales, Glebe, Sydney as the third c ...
.
["World's Best 10 in Tennis"](_blank)
''The Courier-Mail'', 3 February 1947. He was the last man to wear long trousers in a Wimbledon final and was the last Frenchman to win the singles title.
Petra joined the tour of professional players in 1948.
He was inducted into
International Tennis Hall of Fame
The International Tennis Hall of Fame is located in Newport, Rhode Island, United States. It honors both players and other contributors to the sport of tennis. The complex, the former Newport Casino, includes a museum, grass tennis courts, an indo ...
in 2016.
Grand Slam finals
Singles: 1 (1 title)
Doubles: 2 (2 titles)
Mixed doubles: 3 (1 title, 2 runner-ups)
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Petra, Yvon
1916 births
1984 deaths
French male tennis players
French people of Vietnamese descent
Grand Slam (tennis) champions in men's singles
Grand Slam (tennis) champions in mixed doubles
Grand Slam (tennis) champions in men's doubles
Professional tennis players before the Open Era
International Tennis Hall of Fame inductees
French Championships (tennis) champions
Wimbledon champions (pre-Open Era)
French prisoners of war in World War II