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)
A tale of two cities: On one end, Shanghai, who’s ready to step out of Beijing’s architectural shadow with some record-breaking structures of its own. The showcase: the completion, after 14 (!) years, of the Shanghai World Financial Center — standing at 1,600 feet as the tallest building in China and the third tallest in the world. The Park Hyatt Shanghai has taken up shop in the 79th through 93rd floors of the 101-story skyscraper, just in time to welcome fans eager for another Roger/Rafa bout at the year-ending Tennis Masters Cup.
And down South, on Brazil’s Emerald Coast, the Ponta Dos Ganchos Resort is debuting five luxury seafront bungalows via an auction to benefit Instituto Guga Kuerten. The four new Emerald Villa Bungalows (2,455 sq. ft.) and one Special Emerald Villa Bungalow (3,210 sq. ft.), opening in the first week of December, feature dry saunas and jacuzzis with sea views, personal spa areas with massage tatamis, wine cellars, and private decks and plunge pools. The Special Emerald Villa Bungalow also includes an in-villa fitness center.
Bid: The silent auction for the PDG villas ends October 31, 2008. For more information, click here. One interesting note: “Cancellations are not accepted and are subject to total loss of payment as proceeds will be donated directly to Instituto Guga Kuerten.”
Book: See room rates (plus, on the landing page, a view from the hotel out to Shanghai) at the Park Hyatt website.
(via UD; screengrabs from each property’s website)
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…
Guga Kuerten lost his first round match against Sebastien Grosjean in the first round of the Sony Ericsson Open. The scoreline: 6-1, 7-5.
While his game might not have held up, his fashion sense sure did. He wore a bright orange/red kit (with red hat, red shoes) from Diadora Guga Kuerten. Le sigh, we’ll sure miss his flair when he retires.
In doubles, he wore white and won one match with Nicolas Lapentti against Feliciano Lopez and Fernando Verdasco. They lost in the next round to Aspelin and Knowles. Lapentti also presented Kuerten with an award at an ATP banquet during the tournament.
Looking forward: Kuerten’s next stop on his farewell tour is a Challenger-level tournament in Florianopolis, Brazil. That event begins on April 14.
(photos by Getty Images)
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.
It’s nice to see Guga Kuerten taken out of reserve to play the doubles rubber with Andre Sa at this week’s Davis Cup.
These Brazilians faced Austria in a Word Group Play-off tie. Jurgen Melzer and Julian Knowle won the match 6-1, 6-1, 6-4, which put the Austrians in next year’s World Group (aka the main Davis Cup draw).
I love the yellow socks. Nice touch!
RELATED POSTS
>> TSF’s davis cup coverage
>> sa watch 2007
>> guga watch
>> learn more about guga kuerten’s clothing line
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
We’re sad we missed it: TSF faves Guga Kuerten played doubles with Robby Ginepri at this year’s U.S. Open. They faced Brazilians Marcelo Melo and Andre Sa in the first round, and lost 7-6 (5), 6-2.
Guga’s optimistic and baggage-free with his recovery from hip surgeries, and is using doubles as a segue back into the pro circuit:
“I’m not regret with everything that happened, even with all my injuries,” he said. “The only difference (is) I have some white hair in my head. I feel a little bit the signs of age.
“I’d rather stick with doubles a little bit, see if my body can respond a little bit better for the future.” (source)
Guga on reserve: Kuerten will be on reserve for the Brazilian Davis Cup team facing the Austrians (in Innsbruck on Sept 21-23, 2007). He’ll back up the team comprising Flavio Saretta, Ricardo Mello, Andre Sa and Marcelo Melo.
Still standing: Meanwhile, at the Open, Sa and Melo will face the Czech team of Frantisek Cermak and Leos Friedl, seeded 15th.
(photo via Magic Jewball)
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.
RELATED POSTS
>> more guga: camo and loterÃa
>> 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 loterÃa (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.
Guga lives on: Columnist Charles Bricker lets us know that Guga is still months away from recovery, and likely can’t take advantage of a U.S. Open wildcard. In the meantime, you can enjoy this fan art.
Monte Carlos Masters stays put: The organizers of this Masters Series tourney get to keep their mid-April date, their ranking points, and prize money levels. Unfortunately, the ATP won’t enforce player commitments for the event, which could mean a lackluster field. But with plenty of players calling the Principality of Monaco home, perhaps recruiting players won’t be so hard to do… (IHT, DT)
Someone loves you, Andy: Andy Roddick‘s still smarting about his quarterfinal loss to Richard Gasquet at this year’s Wimbledon, but he can take consolation in ranking 59th in AfterElton’s Hot 100 list.
It’s not just ‘tennis elbow’ anymore: Spine injury can rear its ugly head early on, so teens: be careful!
A sports lover’s haven: After the sixth hour on the couch watching Wimbledon coverage, I dream about a house like this, too. (LAT)
(OT) Chanel’s mobile pavilion: Designer Karl Lagerfeld has commissioned architect Zaha Hadid to create a pavilion for Chanel‘s Mobile Art exhibition. (On the Runway)
The U.S. Open Series coverage begins: When something gets a New York Times mention, you know it’s got it made. (Talking Tennis)
Sharapova expands her empire: The Manhattan Beach resident played a WTT match for the Newport Beach Breakers last night. She wore the Summer Sphere Tank from her clothing sponsor, Nike. (via AVP)
Hyuk of the day: Yes, we chuckled when we saw this headline. Did she tie her shoes too tight? Do you hear that frog? (via OTB)
Nike and adidas should watch out: As sneaker companies sense that China will soon become a big-time market, the sponsorship agreements doled out get more and more creative. (Slate)
RELATED POSTS
>> Tennis Served Fresh’s short balls archive
After this year’s Wimbledon, everyone’s going home with their own “crazy rain delay” story. For example, Robin Soderling lost his fellow players’ respect after his marathon match with Nadal, Venus survived a scare against Morigami, and Brazilian doubles pair Andre Sa and Marcelo Melo, well, uhm…
…they beat Hanley and Ulyett after a record-setting fifth set (28-26). Bad weather forced the match to span almost six hours over five days.
Sa said: “We were lucky to have Gustavo Kuerten here with us. Guga watched the game and gave us some help with the match and also gave us the confidence to believe we can go out there and win. With results like this he might get a full-time coaching job, but we think he will probably be too expensive!”
RELATED POSTS
>> sa watch 2007
>> Tennis Served Fresh’s Wimbledon coverage
Forty women are vying for The Scud’s love: But I’ve already broken up with Mark Philippoussis. If you’re still up for reading up on this NBC train wreck, try Page 2.
It makes sense: It crept up on me that after her win over Sharapova in Birmingham, Jelena Jankovic has entered the Top 3. (PA Sport via Sportinglife)
Guga still sidelined: But not by injury. This time, Gustavo Kuerten’s abyssmal ranking — and not his nagging hip injury — forced Brazilian officials to choose Flavio Saretta, Thiago Alves and Marcos Daniel over him for the Pan American Games. (Xinhua, via The Hindu )
Pan Am rehash: You should still tune in to watch the games, though, if only for Brazil’s awesome uniforms (photo above).
Bollettieri sets up shop in Dubai: Legendary tennis coach Nick Bollettieri takes to the Middle East as part of an IMG Academy. (via Dubai City Guide)
Apple, Pilot Inspektor, and now… Jagger: Congratulations to Lindsay Davenport on her newborn son, and good luck to him on the playground. (via MVN.com)
Indian men fawn over the women’s tour: The neophytes of the SEWTA Tour aren’t doing much for Mahesh Bhupati; he still loves Steffi Graf. (via Times of India)
OT READING: An article in the IHT on how open-air markets are disappearing in Hong Kong.
I love how they’ve turned this year’s French Open into a photo opp for injured past champions: yesterday it was Mary “Bum Knee” Pierce, and today it was Guga “Broken Hip” Kuerten.
The three-time winner at Roland Garros looked dashing in his three-button pinstripe suit, don’t you agree?
Trophy Watch: Rafa is holding the Coupe des Mousquetaires, FYI.
You can always count on the Canadians to do things by the book. Very little of their on-court uniform at last weekend’s Davis Cup tie against Brazil (in Brazil) could confuse them for the locals:
Dancevic against the Brazilian, Melo; Polansky
Canadian colors all the way.
Daniel Nestor and Frederic Niemeyer; with costume change
And Brazil stuck to their colors:
Flavio Saretta; Guga Kuerten playing doubles with Andre Sa
If only all countries could follow in their footsteps.
p.s. Brazil won. It’s good to know that even if Guga doesn’t make it far in ATP tournaments, we’ll at least be seeing him at the next round of Davis Cup (barring injury, of course). Here they are, celebrating:
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>> davis cup fashion: learn from the germans
>> davis cup fashion: great britain vs. the netherlands
>> amelia island: pretty in pink (and purple)
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