MARIA ESTHER BUENO

Date of Birth:11 October, 1939 / Date of Death: 8 June 2018
Place of Birth: Sâo Paulo, Brazil / Place of Death: Sâo Paulo, Brazil
Place of Residence: Sâo Paulo, Brazil
Height: 5’ 7” (1.70 m)
Weight: 124 lbs (56 kgs)
Played: Right-handed
Status: Pro (1968)

Grand Slam History – Singles

	58	59	60	61	62	63	64	65	66	67	68	69	76	77	78	79	80
Australia	*	*	QF	*	*	*	*	F	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*
Roland Garros	SF	QF	SF	QF	*	*	F	SF	SF	QF	QF	*	*	*	*	*	*
Wimbledon	QF	W	W	*	SF	QF	W	F	F	4R	QF	*	4R	3R	*	*	Dbles only
Forest Hills	QF	W	F	*	SF	W	W	SF	W	*	SF	*	*	*	*	*	*

Singles Winner:

GRAND SLAMS: Wimbledon – 59, 60 & 64; USA – 59, 63, 64 & 66

OTHERS: AUSTRALIA, Adelaide – 60; AUSTRIA, Vienna – 61; BELGIUM, Antwerp – 60, 67; BRAZIL, Nationals – Senior – 54; Under 14s – 54, Under 21s – 55; Under 18s – 56, 57; South American Champion – 64; Sâo Paulo Under 14s – 53; COLOMBIA, Barranquilla -60, 61; GERMANY, Wiesbaden – 58; Dusseldorf – 58; Baden Baden – 62, 64; GREAT BRITAIN, Manchester – 67; Bristol – 58, 59; Birmingham – 59, 60; Eastbourne – 68; Beckenham – 64; Newport, Wales – 64, 66; IRELAND, Dublin – 64, 65; ITALY, Rome – 58, 61, 65; Florence – 65; Turin – 61; JAPAN, Tokyo – 74; NETHERLANDS, Hilversum – 62; PUERTO RICO, San Juan – 61; SOUTH AFRICA, East London – 64; Cape Town – 63, 64; Johannesburg – 63; Pretoria – 64; SWEDEN, Båstad – 62; SWITZERLAND, Gstaad – 60; Montana – 65; USA, Orange Bowl – 57; Tampa – 58; St Petersburg – 58; Fort Lauderdale – 57, 58; Orlando – 58; Hollywood – 58; Miami – 58; Jacksonville – 58; Houston – 58; Los Angeles – 64, 66; San Francisco – 66; Essex – 66, 68; Pipping Rock – 63; VENEZUELA, Caracas – 60, 61, 62, 63.

DOUBLES WINNER:

GRAND SLAMS: The Grand Slam of Doubles in 60 – Australia with Christine Truman (GBR), French, Wimbledon and USA with Darlene Hard (USA); WIMBLEDON – 58, 60, 63, 65, 66; USA – 60, 62, 63, 66, 68; FRENCH – 60.

OTHERS: ARGENTINA, Buenos Aires – 64; AUSTRALIA, Brisbane – 60; Sydney – 59; Perth – 60; Adelaide – 60; AUSTRIA, Vienna – 61; BELGIUM, Antwerp – 60; BRAZIL, Nationals – Under 14s – 53; Seniors – 54; Unders 21s – 55; Under 18s – 55, 57; South American Champion – 64; Sâo Paulo Seniors – 54, 56; COLOMBIA, Barranquilla – 57, 60, 61, 63; GERMANY, Wiesbaden – 58; Baden Baden – 62, 64; Munich – 66; GREAT BRITAIN, Manchester – 63; Birmingham – 59, 60; Eastbourne – 68; Nottingham – 63; Beckenham – 64; Hoylake – 66; Queen’s Club, London – 60; IRELAND, Dublin – 65; ITALY, Rome – 62; JAMAICA, Kingston – 57; Montego Bat – 57, 58, 63; PUERTO RICO, San Juan – 57, 58, 60, 62; SWEDEN, Båstad – 62; SWITZERLAND, Gstaad – 60, 65; Montana – 65; SOUTH AFRICA, East London – 63, 64; Cape Town – 63; Durban – 63; 64; Johannesburg – 63, 64; Bloemfontein – 63, 64; Pretoria – 64; USA, Tampa – 58; St Petersburg – 58; Coral Gables – 57, 58; Essex – 65, 68; Fort Lauderdale – 57, 58; Orlando – 58; Hollywood – 58; Henderson Park – 58; Miamia – 58; Houston – 58; Los Angeles – 58, 60, 62, 63; San Francisco – 58, 60, 62, 68; Richmond – 68; Chicago – 63; Pennsylvania – 63; South Orange – 63; Pipping Rock – 63; Honolulu – 65; VENEZUELA, Caracas – 59, 60, 61, 63.

MIXED DOUBLES WINNER:

GRAND SLAMS: FRANCE – 60

OTHERS: AUSTRALIA, Sydney – 59; Adelaide – 60; AUSTRIA, Vienna – 61; BRAZIL, Nationals: Seniors – 57; Sâo Paulo Seniors – 55; GERMANY, Berlin – 59; Baden Baden – 64; Munich – 65; GREAT BRITAIN, Beckenham – 65, 68; IRELAND, Dublin – 65; JAMAICA, Montego Bay – 57; SWEDEN, Båstad – 62; Switzerland, Gstaad – 60, 65; Montana – 65; VENEZUELA, Caracas – 60.

SINGLES FINALIST:

GRAND SLAMS: WIMBLEDON – 65, 66; USA – 60; FRANCE – 64; AUSTRALIA – 65.

OTHERS: ARGENTINA, Buenos Aires – 64; BRAZIL, Nationals – Under 14s – 52; Under18s – 55; South American Team Championships – 57; COLOMBIA, Barranquilla – 58, 63; GERMANY, Berlin – 59; Hamburg – 58, 64, 66; GREAT BRITAIN, Beckenham – 65, 66; Bristol – 62; Manchester – 58, 65; Nottingham – 63; IRELAND, Dublin – 77; ITALY, Rome – 62; Naples – 61; JAMAICA, Montego Bay – 58, 63; NETHERLANDS, Hilversum – 64; MOROCCO, Casablanca – 63; PUERTO RICO, San Juan – 60, 62; SOUTH AFRICA, East London – 63; Johannesburg – 64, 67; Bloemfontein – 64; SWITZERLAND, Gstaad – 65; USA, Coral Gables – 57, 58; West Palm Beach – 58; Los Angeles – 59, 68l; San Francisco – 63, 68; Essex – 62, 63; VENEZUELA, Caracas – 58, 59, 69.

DOUBLES FINALIST:

GRAND SLAMS: WIMBLEDON – 67; USA – 58, 59, 63; FRANCE – 61.

OTHERS: IRELAND, Dublin – 64; ITALY, Rome – 59; GERMANY, Hamburg – 65; GREAT BRITAIN, Bristol – 59; Neport, Wales – 64; Queen’s Club. London – 62; SOUTH AFRICA, Johannesburg – 67; VENEZUELA, Caracas – 58; CANADA, Toronto – 58; USA, Orange Bowl – 57; St Petersburg – 57; Los Angeles – 59, 68; Essex – 62; BRAZIL Nationals – Under 21s – 56, 57; South American Team Championships – 55; Sâo Paulo Seniors – 54.

MIXED DOUBLES FINALIST:

GRAND SLAMS: WIMBLEDON – 59, 60, 67; USA – 60; FRANCE – 64, 65.

OTHERS: BRAZIL, Nationals: Seniors – 57; Under 21s – 55; Sâo Paulo Seniors – 53; COLOMBIA, Barranquilla – 57, 58, 59; ITALY, Rome – 64; GERMANY, Dusseldorf – 58; Hamburg – 62, 66; Bielefeld – 62; GREAT BRITAIN, Newport, Wales – 66; Queen’s Club, London – 59; MOROCCO, Casablanca – 63; NETHERLANDS, Hilversum – 62, 64; SOUTH AFRICA, East London – 64; Johannesburg – 67; USA, West Palm Beach – 58; Jacksonville – 67.

ADDITIONAL

Declared World Champion in 1959, 1960, 1964 AND 1966
Ranked in the world Top Ten from 1958-1968
Brazilian Federation Cup team member in 1965, 76 and 77
Pan American Games: Champion – 63; 3^rd Place Doubles – 55; Finalist Doubles – 63; Finalist Mixed Doubles – 63

QUICK FACTS

Won the singles at Wimbledon 3 times, the first in 1959 in just her second attempt at 19 years 266 days, one of the youngest champions of all time, and then again in 1960 and 64; She was a finalist twice in 1965 and 66
Amassed 19 Grand Slam titles in singles, doubles and mixed in a short career spanning just 10 years, listing 16th among all-time women’s Grand Slam leaders
She is in 12th place in the list of most prolific Grand Slam Singles Champions (excluding those won in the era of the Challenge Round)
In total, she won an amazing 589 titles
Injured her right elbow and forearm at Wimbledon in 1967 which ended her dominance of the women’s game and ultimately her rivalries with Margaret Smith Court and Billie Jean King. She retired in early 1969 on the Caribbean circuit
Made occasional appearances through the 70s, winning the Japan Open in 1974 and returning to Wimbledon for some nostalgic Centre Court matches in 1976 and 77
Played in the inaugural opening seasons of World Team Tennis in 1974 and 75
Her last appearance at Wimbledon in the open events was the 1980 mixed doubles with Victor Pecci, after which she continued to compete in the senior events until 1994
Voted Athlete of the Year by the Associated Press in 1959
Honoured in Brazil with an airmail postage stamp, five statues, a mural and a sculpture
In 1961, Madam Tussauds displayed a wax model of her in London
Inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1978
Elected to the Museum and Sports Hall of Fame in New York in 1993
Named the Best Latin American Tennis Player of the 20th Century to celebrate the Millennium
Received the Jean Borotra Sportsmanship Award presented by the International Club at Wimbledon 2003
In May 2006, received the prestigious Raccheta D’Oro Award in Rome
In October 2014, received the São Paulo medal and diploma, Medalha Anchieta e o Diploma de Gratidão de São Paulo, the highest accolade the state capital can bestow on a citizen
The Olympic Tennis Stadium in Rio de Janeiro was named the Maria Esther Bueno Stadium in December 2015
Carried the Olympic Torch through the main street in São Paulo on Sunday 24 July, 2016
Opened the Closing Ceremony of the 31st Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro at Maracanã Stadium by presenting the folded Brazilian flag during the National Anthem for flying alongside the Olympic flag
Did colour commentary for television and for the BBC Radio’s Brazilian World Service
Acted as a consultant to the ITF and COSAT and assisted with the development of professional women’s tennis events throughout Latin America
Spoke 5 languages (Portuguese, Spanish, English, French and Italian) and enjoys travelling, art museums and the theatre
Lived in Sâo Paulo, Brazil but visited the USA and the UK regularly up until her death on 8 June 2018 at Nove de Julho hospital in São Paulo
Honoured at her home club, the Sociedade Harmonia de Tênis in São Paulo, with a tournament bearing her name for the top 8 Under 23 male players competing for a wild card slot in the main draw at the ATP 500 pro event in Rio de Janeiro