Cornelia Grünes (born November 10, 1969) is a German former tennis player.

Career

Grünes began playing tennis at the age of twelve in

East Berlin East Berlin (; ) was the partially recognised capital city, capital of East Germany (GDR) from 1949 to 1990. From 1945, it was the Allied occupation zones in Germany, Soviet occupation sector of Berlin. The American, British, and French se ...

at the SG Friedrichshagen. She initially played in the club for only three months and then trained according to the practice schedules set up by her father. In 1983, she won her first tournament in Dresden. In 1985 and 1986, Grünes became the youth champion of East Germany, and in 1986 she also became the East German champion in adult mixed doubles. Due to an application for emigration filed by her family in August 1986, Grünes was subsequently no longer allowed to compete in championships, but continued to compete in tournaments. Grünes played her first match after moving to West Germany in Mainz in 1988 in the elimination round for the German championship. She lived briefly in

Bürstadt Bürstadt () is a town in the Bergstraße district in southern Hesse, Germany, 7 km east of Worms, and 17 km north of Mannheim. In 1981, the town hosted the 21st '' Hessentag'' state festival. Geography Location Bürstadt lies in the ...

in Hesse and then in

West Berlin West Berlin ( or , ) was a political enclave which comprised the western part of Berlin from 1948 until 1990, during the Cold War. Although West Berlin lacked any sovereignty and was under military occupation until German reunification in 1 ...

. There, the 1.70 meter tall left-hander became a member of the LTTC "Rot-Weiß" club. Grünes later competed for the club Grün-Gold Tempelhof. In the professional field, Grünes participated in numerous tournaments in different countries between 1989 and 1999. Her highest ranking in the world was 336th in singles (July 1992) and 403rd in doubles (June 1996). In singles she won ITF tournaments in

Santo Domingo Santo Domingo, formerly known as Santo Domingo de Guzmán, is the capital and largest city of the Dominican Republic and the List of metropolitan areas in the Caribbean, largest metropolitan area in the Caribbean by population. the Distrito Na ...

in November 1991 and in

Curaçao Curaçao, officially the Country of Curaçao, is a constituent island country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located in the southern Caribbean Sea (specifically the Dutch Caribbean region), about north of Venezuela. Curaçao includ ...

in November 1995, and reached the finals in ITF tournaments in

Jersey Jersey ( ; ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey, is an autonomous and self-governing island territory of the British Islands. Although as a British Crown Dependency it is not a sovereign state, it has its own distinguishing civil and gov ...

(September 1994),

Kugayama is a neighbourhood of Tokyo in Suginami ward, west of Shinjuku in Japan. Kugayama is a residential community A residential community is a community, usually a small town or city, that is composed mostly of residents, as opposed to ...

, Japan (September 1997), and

Toruń Toruń is a city on the Vistula River in north-central Poland and a World Heritage Sites of Poland, UNESCO World Heritage Site. Its population was 196,935 as of December 2021. Previously, it was the capital of the Toruń Voivodeship (1975–199 ...

, Poland (August 1998). Grünes moved to the United States and began studying business at

Barry University Barry University is a private Catholic university in Miami Shores, Florida. Founded in 1940 by the Adrian Dominican Sisters, it is one of the largest Catholic universities in the Southeast and is located within the Archdiocese of Miami. Th ...

in Florida. As a collegiate tennis player, Grünes earned

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

n honors in 2003. While continuing her studies at the

University at Albany The State University of New York at Albany (University at Albany, UAlbany, or SUNY Albany) is a Public university, public research university in Albany, New York, United States. Founded in 1844, it is one of four "university centers" of the St ...

, Grünes served as a coach there, coaching the women's collegiate team in 2005–06. Grünes later became employed by a Florida-based company that consults with individuals in sports and business, among others.

ITF tournament titles

Singles

Doubles

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Grünes, Cornelia 1969 births German female tennis players East German tennis players Living people Tennis players from Berlin Sportspeople from East Berlin East German sportswomen