Guga was awarded with the Cruz do Mérito Desportivo (Cross of Sporting Merit) yesterday in Brasilia. This is the the Brazil’s highest honor awarded to athletes.
And at this week’s Open GDF SUEZ tournament in Paris, the women celebrated the recent retirement of two-time Grand Slam champ Amelie Mauresmo, whose post-pro life will be devoted to everything (including running the NYC Marathon) — but coaching. Read an account of this tribute (including a video clip!) over at DtL.
(via WTB)
Trophy watch: Three-time French Open champion (and TSF fave) Guga Kuerten bid adieu to the red clay of Roland Garros for the final time, accepting a wild card that his body couldn’t back up. He lost to Paul-Henri Mathieu 6-3, 6-4, 6-2. And when it was all over, they awarded Guga with a cross-section of the court that propelled him to the upper echelons of tennis.
As a good luck charm, Guga wore the same Diadora kit as when he won his first French Open title in 1997. That title was the first of 20 that he would eventually rack up in his 13-year career.
Take that, Roger Federer!
Here are a few more pictures, plus a link to Chris Clarey‘s NYT write-up of the match — all after the cut…
If they can’t join you, beat them: Woman’s Day continues to feed Hewitt-mania even after Bec Cartwright declined to renew her column for the Australian magazine. This week’s cover story: Bec’s marriage meltdown — “Stress, boredom and the loss of a successful, glamorous career have many wondering how long the pair will last…”
Le sad: The Estado de S. Paulo newspaper reports that Guga Kuerten will play his last season in 2008. Tourneys in his schedule include the French Open, the Brasil Open, and the Masters Series Miami. After retirement, perhaps he can devote more time to his clothing line. I want to see them do both the spring/summer and fall/winter shows! (src)
(Too) short shorts?: We bitch when the shorts are too long, and we bitch when the shorts are too short. Let’s make up our minds, shall we?
Planets are aligning: Venus Williams and golfer boyfriend Hank Kuehne are engaged. Mazel tov!
askjdflakjsdf: I’m over it.
For aspiring tennis journos: Blogging has given us a foot in the door, perhaps, but it still doesn’t compare to getting published online or in print. If you’re ready to take that next step, mediabistro’s How To Pitch section recently profiled Tennis magazine’s freelancing opportunities (reg. req’d.). On the fence? The sport doesn’t exactly have the highest Q rating, but sports journalists, as a whole, are very much in demand.
Cayman, the next frontier: The Outback Champions Series continues its expansion outside the U.S. by holding The Ritz-Carlton, Grand Cayman Championships (April 16-20, 2008). Courier, Arias, and Ferreira have committed to play.
RELATED POSTS
>> TSF’s short balls archive
I found some more graphic designs for Guga Kuerten. Not sure if they’re for t-shirts or ads. Either way, they are a perfect representation of the company’s laid back, surfer/skater attitude. These first three are from TavinhoCosta. (source)
This is a great take on a company crest.
On the left, using the famous Japanese woodblock print by Hokusai.
And a literal mixture of Guga Kuerten’s presence in tennis and skateboarding.
Here are some promotional videos created by Marcelo Bala (1, 2, 3) for Guga Kuerten‘s eponymous clothing line.
The Jack Johnson(esque?) soundtrack that accompanies the motion graphics are totally what I would expect: laid back, unharshed mellow, surfer.
FYI: in a press conference last week, Kuerten shared that he’ll consider retiring from pro tennis if he can’t compete at a high level within this next year. (It’s not like he won’t have enough to do: there’s his children’s foundation, his clothing line, and appearing at exhibitions, etc.)
Kuerten has been chosen as a reserve when Brazil plays Austria in Davis Cup Word Group playoffs Sept. 21-23.
RELATED POSTS
>> TSF’s gustavo kuerten (the player) archives
>> TSF’s guga kuerten (the clothing line) archives
Brazilian “fotografiker” TavinhoCosta joins Jum Nakao as artists lending a hand in designing for the preppy/skater/surfer Guga Kuerten line.
Above are highlights of some of his work, all of which can be seen here.
RELATED POSTS
>> TSF’s guga kuerten fashion archive
>>
Ok I found some pieces from the s/s ’07 Guga Kuerten women’s collection, including these bikinis below:
Buy: As usual, you can visit the Guga Kuerten website to buy any of the clothing.
Enjoy!
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>> guga kuerten styles: camo and mexican cards
>> guga kuerten styles: florianopolis store pics
>> fashion focus: guga kuerten + summer ’07 line
>> Guga Kuerten archive
Above is the visual merch layout for Guga Kuerten‘s Florianopolis store. This rollout was for the line’s Summer ’07 collection.
More interior design photos here.
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>> more guga: camo and lotería
>> fashion focus: guga kuerten – s/s 2007
>> fashion focus: guga kuerten + summer ’07 line
>> Guga Kuerten archive
More Guga goods from www.popbr.biz, including a camo line (fun briefs!) and one inspired by lotería (aka Mexican bingo) below.
RELATED POSTS
>> fashion focus: guga kuerten – s/s 2007
>> fashion focus: guga kuerten + summer ’07 line
>> Guga Kuerten archive
Here are some more looks from Guga Kuerten, the eponymous fashion line of the Brazilian tennis star. That’s the spring/summer ’07 collection above (also by Agustina Comas).
Bonus round: This Tenis Pro clip shows Guga getting a massage (and talking about surfing, his Roland Garros titles, etc.). Later he gets dressed in his own designs.
RELATED POSTS
>> fashion focus: guga kuerten + summer ’07 line
>> Guga Kuerten (the collection) archive
>> Guga Kuerten (the player) archive
Oh man I was trying to get information about Gustavo Kuerten‘s clothing sponsor (because what blog covering tennis fashion would ignore this Brazilian’s bright-colored style?) and it turns out he has his own line.
HISTORY: Guga Kuerten launched on November 30, 2005 under the creative direction of top Brazilian designer Jum Nakao. (See a Nakao show.)
Along with tennis clothes, the line has beach wear, surf wear, and polo shirts — with a smaller “Mr. Kuerten” collection featuring jeans and polo shirts. As far as I can tell, the women’s line is all beachwear still. Its first store opened in Florianopolis.
Guga wore Diadora and Olympikus on court prior to the 2006 season and his own line after. You can spot the Guga line by it’s rough spiral logo (seen here on his sleeve).
The photos above are pieces from the High Summer ’07 collection designed by artist Agustina Comas for Nakao. It’s laid back, surfer, and preppy all at once. Very Seth Cohen of The O.C.. What do you think of the line? Tell us.
Buy: Check out Guga’s official website to purchase the clothes.
tennis served fresh 
