In the tennis world, Marion Bartoli is known for her unusual technique, as well as the manner of keeping on the court. She strokes with two hands on both sides, and nowadays it’s considered very rare. People say that Marion adopted two-handed shots according to the idea of ​her father from Monica Seles, and the first forehand, thus made, turned out to be much better than the previous one. Marion’s move on the serve is also quite peculiar. To give the ball extra speed, she uses a wrist. However, the behavior of the Frenchwoman during matches causes the most questions. As soon as Bartoli goes to the court, she begins to jump like a ball, between the games she imitates shots, scaring the ballboys, and standing at the ready position looms up like a Chumbley. Although the fans and rivals are already accustomed, they still joke periodically. However, for an unprepared viewer, the spectacle is bizarre.

The way Marion, of course, is not easy, but at the same time simply incredible. In this article, you will learn about the tennis player everything from her childhood to the birth of her daughter this year.

Family, childhood, and relationship with father

Marion Bartoli was born in Le Puy en Velay, France. She started playing tennis at the age of 6 with her father, Walter Bartoli. Father is a doctor who has been attached to not only tennis but also chess all his life. Mother – Sophie, who worked most of her life as a nurse, while having a great love for singing. Marion also has a brother, Frank, who served in the French army, and as a child was fond of football.

As is often the case with girls, Bartoli has been coached by her father since childhood. It was thanks to Dr. Walter that Marion began to practice tennis at the age of six, as he began to travel with her in tournaments, leaving medical practice when the time came. Dr. Walter gave her daughter her now-famous unusual technique and developed an author’s training program, which is still called eccentric at best.

Once in his interview, Walter Bartoli spoke about exactly how he makes a training plan for his daughter, and also why he considers his method to be the best in solving this issue.

“I have my own approach because I’m not a tennis player. Most coaches are players in the past, and they are trying to strengthen the shots of their wards due to movements of the wrists and hands. However, I look at it a little differently, especially when it comes to Marion, who always plays with two hands. For her, physical training and the speed that she develops on the court due to her legs are especially important. I buy a lot of scientific books, read them and then compile my own regime on their basis. Sometimes, if it seems to me that this or that scheme is suitable for Marion, I borrow it,”

Dr. Walter shared.

Meanwhile, the relationship between father and daughter didn’t always work out smoothly. And although Marion is never conducted on provocation and always protects dad from journalists, once she didn’t hold back and even kicked him out of her match at Wimbledon. And in another year, unexpected news suddenly appeared that father and daughter no longer work together, and the tennis player is looking for a new specialist, because “it’s time to make independent decisions.” Since then, Marion has changed more than one coach and returned to dad a couple of times, having managed to cooperate with Amelie Mauresmo and former sparring partner of Bernard Tomic Thomas Drouet. Dr. Walter even at the legendary Wimbledon came only to the final and spent the morning before the decisive match, “walking around the village.” Of course, everything is good that ends well, but still a little sad that after so many years of joint work, Marion won her Big Victory at the first Grand Slam tournament, which she spent without her dad.

Marion Bartoli is superior in intelligence to Einstein?

Somehow, in a conversation with reporters, Marion said the test for the level of intelligence, which she passed as a child, gave a very high result – IQ 175. It’s higher than Albert Einstein and Bill Gates, who received 160 each, as well as Sofya Kovalevskaya, who scored 170. Of course, such a revelation in the tennis world became a hit, and Marion was immediately nicknamed Genius with a certain amount of irony since it’s believed the coefficient is higher than 145 – an indicator of genius. However, it’s absolutely not necessary to delve into the niceties of measuring intelligence to recognize a decent person in Bartoli. You can notice that in her words she is always thoughtful, open, and correct. For example, after reaching the Wimbledon final, the question “how are you feeling?”

Marion replied:

“I want to congratulate my rival once again because she had a great tournament, and she is great and well done. I hugged her after the match because it’s very difficult to reach the semifinals of the Grand Slam with an injury. However, she did it anyway, which caused me great respect.”

Besides, once on ESPN, the Frenchwoman effectively besieged the presenters, calmly continuing the Fibonacci sequence. This once again proves that no matter how anyone jokes about a tennis player, you shouldn’t underestimate her at all.

Stories about how the French Tennis Federation didn’t let Bartoli go to the Olympics, as well as how the BBC had to apologize for the words of its commentator about the athlete

The first story

In the first story, we will talk about how the French Tennis Federation didn’t let Bartoli go to the Olympics. Not everyone knows that Marion has been in a silent conflict with the French Tennis Federation for many years. The tennis player refused to play for the national team since players aren’t allowed to come to the training camp with personal coaches. The Federation, in turn, didn’t want to make an exception for it and set a precedent. As a result, for nine years, Bartoli played in the Federation Cup only once – in 2004. And it’d be okay, but in tennis, regular performances in the national team are a prerequisite for selection for the Olympics.

Before the Olympic season, this issue wasn’t too serious. It seemed that common sense would prevail closer to business. However, it didn’t happen: as Bartoli in previous years refused to make concessions, the FFT rested and at the time of truth didn’t nominate her to participate in the Games. Even Nicolas Sarkozy in the last days of his presidency stood up for the athlete, but it was just useless. As a result, the only Frenchwoman in the Top 40 of the world ranking missed the Olympics, which took place on the courts of Wimbledon, the only Grand Slam tournament in which she reached the finals. When the return road was no longer there, Bartoli, a very calm girl in her nature, literally declared war on the FFT, saying the following:

“I didn’t say anything, although they infringed upon me for 15 years. But after the Olympics, a real war will begin – believe me.”

Fortunately, the war didn’t happen. Soon after, Amelie Mauresmo became the captain of the national team, who proclaimed the return of Bartoli to the national team with her goal No. 1, and the very next season Marion finally performed under the national flag.

Marion after winning Wimbledon

The second story

In the second story, we will talk about how the BBC had to apologize for the words of its commentator about Marion. During a report from the Wimbledon finale, Air Force commentator John Inversdale, watching Bartoli’s triumphant embrace with his father, said:

“Do you think Dr. Walter told his young daughter: “Look, you can never be beautiful, you aren’t Sharapova, so you need to be tenacious and persistent?”

The host further emphasized that Bartoli is an amazing role model for everyone who is not an athlete from nature, but this also didn’t look very much like a compliment and caused outrage from many listeners. As a result, the corporation issued an official statement apologizing for Inversdale’s incorrect statements. Marion, however, as a smart girl was not upset, answering the following:

“By God, I don’t care. Yeah, I’m not blonde. It’s a fact. Have I ever dreamed of a career as a model? No. I’m sorry. Did I dream of winning Wimbledon? Yeah, always. Now all my life I will be able to look at a photo of myself with a champion trophy. And this is the most important thing for me.”

Dr. Walter, in turn, commented on the situation with even greater merit:

“I’m not mad at Inverdale. I have a gorgeous daughter. I have no idea what this man was talking about.”

The main victory in her life is a triumph at Wimbledon

In tennis, there are no trials harder than Grand Slam tournaments, and achievements are more significant than winning such a tournament. That is why they are most often won by the same people – the best of the best. Of course, sometimes cataclysms happen, and the Grand Slam falls on some “random” head. It, for example, happened with Gaston Gaudio at Roland Garros-2004. And it also happens that the major title goes to someone who endured for a long time and waited for his chance. Marion Bartoli won her Wimbledon that way. For the time being, the Frenchwoman simply did her work, and then wisely disposed of the opportunity that opened up to her.

The triumph of Bartoli is a very life-affirming and instructive story about hard work and modesty. The girl decided to become an athlete because she wanted to prove she couldn’t only study. She trained not at the academy with an eminent coach, but with a self-taught dad. Having already become a world-class player, she hasn’t had a reliable sponsor for a long time, because she is too original to enjoy commercial success. She played almost fifty Grand Slams, only once flying into the finals – it seemed, by a happy accident. And then she won the greatest tournament in the world, and even for one day, but she was the main tennis player in the world. Isn’t that inspiring?

Was Marion Bartoli lucky to win Wimbledon? You bet. But her story is only better from this.

Sudden decision to end a career after a triumph

After the Wimbledon triumph, Bartoli didn’t play for a month. She just rested, had fun with the football “Marseille” and healed injuries. Shortly after the break, she resumed performances. At the prestigious tournament in Toronto, the tennis player won one match and withdrew from the second due to press damage. It would seem normal. Between the cases, Marion said she didn’t want to stop at the Wimbledon triumph, was diligently preparing for the US Open, and knew: her place was on the court. All the more shocking was her subsequent announcement of her immediate retirement, which she made after losing the tournament in Cincinnati.

Bartoli explained her decision by endless sickness and the fact that “the body refused.” However, there are still more questions left than answers. The amazed tennis world still cannot believe this really happened, but in one thing everything comes together: the marvelous girl Marion Bartoli is always true to herself and does everything in her own way.

Birth of a daughter

Not everyone knows, but in November last year, Bartoli married Belgian footballer Yahya Boumediene. Since the Frenchwoman announced the end of her career after winning Wimbledon 2013, 13 years have passed. Of course, Marion now finally has enough time for her family, so the other day she reported she first became a mother. The 36-year-old tennis player, who has not performed since August 2013, had a daughter, who was named Camille.

Results

After reading this article, it becomes extremely clear the Frenchwoman Marion Bartoli is one of the most unusual and at the same time amazing tennis players in the history of big tennis. Even though she completed her career 7 years ago, and even did it quite unexpectedly, her name is still remembered. Denying the obvious is stupid enough. Marion is a great tennis legend who has definitely contributed to his story. Now Marion devotes all her time to herself and her family, so it remains for us to wish her family well-being, as well as to thank her and her father for the incredible way they have come together.