I'm so happy that Hana's been showing up in front of media quite a few times recently, maybe because of
Wimbledon is on now. Obviously Hana, two-time runner-up in Wimbledon, is wanted. She first showed up in Praha, Czech and then to Wimbledon. I'm so happy I could reach her through these medias!
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This is the latest of the latest interviews of Hana.
It's on air yesterday! Can you believe this?
This is just amazing! The freshiest of the Freshiests!
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Even I can't make out what's she's been asked or speaking there, I'm so satisfied with this video. It's beautifully taken actually and Hana seems to be in quite good shape. I know she must be keeping up herself good.
Thank you,
Česká televize! You always provide us with this beautiful Hana things.
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And many thanks to my Czech friend
Tom Pavlica, I'm crossing my fingers for your English translation sending me again (^O^). You always offering me this wonderful sacrifice. But this interview is amazingly long (23min), so I'm afraid it might take your valuable time away. You can't go hang out with somebody hottie this weekend, can you? Oh, wait! That's right. You're also in love with Hana, and this is the one you'd love to devote.
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I guess I better let you do it, don't I? (^O^)
Well, you and I, let's devote to cheering for Hana Mandlikova untill the day this planet ends! (^O^)(^O^)(^O^) We're Hana Freak!
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http://www.loh.cz/vysilani/2009/07/03/10095426857-209411058040703-17:30-interview-ct24/.
Youtube :
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English Translated by Tom Pavlica
(Thank you, Tom!)
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Interviewer ( I : Daniela Drtinová)
Guest (HM : Hana Mandlikova)
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I : Good evening. The tennis legend, Hana Mandlíková is going to help tennis talents in Czech Republic. She has become the official face of the TK Sparta Praha Tennis Club. Currently being in the Czech Republic, she admitted to answer some questions tonight. She is a four-time Grand Slam champion, for two and a half year she was WTA No. 3. She won 27 titles in singles, and 6 in doubles, only the Wimbledon triumph is missing. HanaMandlikova is on ČT24 with us. .
Good evening.
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HM : Good evening.
I : How often are you coming to coach children at Sparta?
HM : I am planning to come here twice a year, dedicating my time to young talents.
I : Twice a year for a longer time.
Tell us your plan. How are you trying to do it?
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HM : I'm staying here about two to three weeks.
I : Two to three weeks. Do you think you can work with them within this period? How are you going to aim your attention to make them worthwhile?
HM: Sparta and I, we're getting in touch each other. A Sparta director is going to email me about their progress, whether they're getting better or not, what they need and so on. Before I leave, I'm planning to meet some parents of the children I have chosen. And I would be glad that they come to meet me in Florida in future.
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I : So you have already spotted some talents?
HM : Two kids, a girl and a boy.
I : How old are they?
HM : I think both are the same ... the boy is nine, the girl is eight.
I : Specifically, what kind of talents do you see from them?
Can you recognize it at that age? Is it possible?
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HM : You can see it in their spontaneity, in their movings. We had a meeting and it is obvious that they are interested in tennis. They had questions. It is interesting that only these two kids asked me some questions, the other children did not. Maybe others were too shy. I don't know, but these two kids did have some questions.
I : So you can see it in their interest, not only match-related, but also in things that are around tennis?
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HM : Yes, also things around tennis. They want to know how I started playing tennis, what I did to be good player. I told them when I started tennis I used to sleep with my racket laid alongside of my bed, even in my bed. They were "really? Wow! I must do it, too". They're leaning that tennis is important for them even at their age.
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I : You started tennis at Sparta?
HM : I started at Sparta at the age of eight, and it was very important for me, because at that time, they had Jan Kodeš, Martina Navrátilová. Well, watching these top stars of the Czech tennis really really helped me a lot. I used to sit there and watch Jan training very hard, and for Martina I'd been her ball girl some time, and it was very informative for me.
I : Watching these kids practicing at Sparta today, do you find it much harder for you to achieve tennis at your time?
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HM : I don't think so, because we started tennis a bit later than kids today. They start when they are five or six years old, we started about eight or nine.
And the truth is that they finish earlier. They won't play after 28, 29, 30. Look at Henin or Clijsters, they quit at the age of 22. .I : Why is that?
HM : They are worn out, not only physically but mentally, quickly. Their body or muscles didn't develop fully and sufficiently so that they get easily injured or hurt.
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I : So would you recommend us to start a bit later than at the age of five or six?
HM : No, no, I would not recommend it, because, if they want to reach something in tennis, they must start earlier. It is important.
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I : Do you still play tennis?
HM : Well, if you mention as official tournaments, I don't any more. I only play those veteran tournaments at US Open and Wimbledon. As I had troubles with my back, I couldn't play much. I hope I can play presentable tennis.
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I : You're going to Wimbledon in a couple of days?
HM : I am going there on Sunday.
. I : Aren't you ever planning to move back to Czech Republic for good?
HM : I tried it four years ago. Yes, I tried it. And it was good for me to think about it. You know, I traveled around the world since I was fifteen, I get used to live abroad. If I hadn't tried thinking of it I would have never known how would it have been. I would have probably answered with some ambiguity, like, "maybe", "maybe not." But now I can tell it is better for me to be in abroad..
I : Why?
HM : It's hard to explain. Believe me I thought about it many times. There isn't so much difference between here and abroad. You can do and buy everything here, everything is super. But the mentality of people here... It is, kind of, hard to say, but I sometimes get angry, for example, going for shopping, the shop assistant is not very polite, or going to restaurant, you can find it's like that the waiter isn't there for you but you are there for him. Also you have to tell him ten times before you get what you want, and those little things I frustrate me so much..I : It is annoying, isn't it?
HM: It is.
I : You do not want to move back here. Have you ever thought about opening a tennis club for children in Florida?
HM: Well, I couldn't do it myself, I needed some sponsors definitely. So we discussed it with Mr.Cernosek and then we found it's possible, for example in winter when you can't play so much here... You can come to school in Florida. well, it's under negotiation, maybe it is too early to say now.
.I : Last September, Jan Kodeš, 1973 Wimbledon winner, said: Czech tennis clears the house. We can't say it is going to be better in future. Why do you think the Czech tennis is not doing well now? What is the main problem? We definately have some talents, where is the mistake then? Did we wrongly guid them?
.HM : I don't think it's because we did guide them wrongly. There are good coaches and teachers here. Whenever Czech junior go abroad to play, they have a good technique to win and they do well. But especially when they go playing againg seniors, there's a declining. I think, when we talked about mentality, that they are okay with a good car, or a big house. But that's all... Their parents - it must start with parents - they must know that the important thing is to win Grand Slams. The kids should have bigger goals. I remember my father, since I was a kid, he kept telling me, "you are going to win Wimbledon, you can make it." It was not about money, it was always about tennis, sport, and if you are good at something, the money will come along..
I : So you are saying that the motivation of your generation was different. Today's kids and juniors tend to be more material?
HM : I think so, yes. I think that parents today - and kids, too - they see easier life behind that. Money and so on..
I : Would you say that money spoil tennis?
HM : I wouldn't say tennis, I would say children, people.
I : It is probably the same everywhere, not only in tennis, but even in other sport branches.
HM : You mean in Czech Republic?
I : Generally. I mean if there are not too much money in sport and the motivation that goes with it is all money-based.
HM : It is surely the main part of motivation of the best players. If you look at Serena or Venus, comparing to my day, they earn lot more. They earn four or five times more than us. When I won US Open 1985, I got 95 thousand dollars, and now it is half a million dollars. So it is five times more. Maybe it is much harder for you to keep yourself motivated when you can earn big money easier than in my day.. I : Has the financial situation in tennis changed due to the global financial crisis?
HM: I don't think so, no.
I: No influence? And speaking of that, not a tennis-related question: How, according to you, Barack Obama deals with the financial crisis? You voted for him, didn't you?
. HM: I did. I voted for him. I think that the crisis will still continue in the States for a while. It is really terrible, many people lost their jobs and houses. On TV, for example, they now teach people how to save money. When you go for a dinner, you used to have extremely big portion, and now even the meal is smaller in restaurants. Yes, they teach people how to save money, not to have sprinkles-on every day, make it twice or three times a week, and so on. They simply teach them to save money.
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I : Aren't people disappointed now? There were surely very big expectations on Barack Obama, and it is a question whether he can fulfill his promises as a president such as settling down the crisis and so on. No disappoitment in the future?
HM : It hasn't been long since he's become a president, Georg Bush was there for eight years, and he had a long time for ... it is hard to tell, actually he spoilt the country a lot, made many mistakes. And I think that we must give Barack at least four years to see some difference. He is very popular all around the world, I think he can make it. He is a very smart person.
. I : Let's get back to tennis. The great Czech tennis era when Czech players played the Grand Slam finals and so on. Do you think it's coming back again?
HM : I believe it is. I think that Czech is a sports-orientated country. We love sports. We have many talents, we have to find out the way how to develop and use the talents to go higher level.
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I : If there are talents, where is the mistake? According to you, it maybe in the Czech tennis coaching association? Where is the mistake, the biggest one?
HM : I wouldn't like to talk about the association. I'm not going to come back to it. Because I am not here week by week, year by year, so I don't I understand everything, and I wouldn't like to live here for a longer time to have a serious opinion about it.
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I : Okay. Do you think that we will have our Czech player in Top Ten again?
HM : I hope that those two kids at Sparta as I told you before, I wish them luck. I think they are talented, the coaches at Sparta are very good, and I think that if they guide them carefully and lead them as well as their parents the right way, there will be a chance. Definitely.
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I : We've talked about juniors to seniors. There's one thing, especially with mentality in young girls and women tennis. What should the relationship be like? This is also important. Obviously, not every player at this age is strong enough to live a tennis life plus some relationship ...
HM : You mean a partnership?
I : Yes, a partnership, live or going out with somebody.
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HM : This is a very good question. I think, the younger they start playing tennis, the more difficulties they have. If you do only one thing since you are five or six, which is tennis and school, there would be nothing else you could have time for. You would be totally unexperienced in other way of life, on the other hand normal eighteen years old girl can attend clubs, parties and all that. Tennis saturated girl has no time for that. And suddenly, when she turns to 21 or 22, she meets a pretty boy and thinks "why would I play tennis on and on? I want to enjoy my life." But, you know, this girl thinks differently than normal girl.
When I give up my career, I had some big troubles to adapt this normal life. You've living in a green house. All you did was just tennis, tennis, tennis! Everyone pat you on your shoulder, smile at you, and you can't see the reality. I think I was lucky because I always wanted children, and then it was important for me to tell myself I am going to care about my children and give them my love and stop to be egoistic..I : You gave up your tennis when you were 28. You had surely had some serious problems in relationships. How complicated was it to connect them with tennis? What would you advice to them who go from juniors to seniors, those tennis teens, especially girls?
HM: It is also an interesting question, I think that it's the matter of things inside of you, inside of the player. Even though I always knew that tennis was the most important thing for me, I had some troubles, for example my friends had boyfriends when we were 17, and I didn'd have any. But tennis was more important than anything else and I kept saying to myself, well, I am going to catch up on this later.
.I : A lot was written about Nicole Vaidišová, our talented player, who may have the similar problems. As you watch the Czech girls in tennis, do you think that she will play great tennis again?HM: I think she is a good example. I do not know the details about it, but, such a young girl but achieved a high level, no wonder if it may have caused some troubles like what we're talking about. She, No.12 player, is young and then somebody may have appeared whom she was interested in. And he soon became a matter for her, and tennis stopped being so important for her as much as it used to be. But I believe if she can look in the mirror and admit some things, she can soon be back to high level again. I wish that for her, because she is very talented.
.I : You gave up your tennis in 1990 when you were 28, after twelve years playing. I read somewhere that when you were young, there weren't good rackets in this country, and you had to play with anything you could get. You played with a very poor heavy racket, it must have been very hard for your young body, muscles, and back. Do you think it was one of the reasons you quit so early?.HM: Definitely. At that time, There was only one weigh-type of racket, I started playing with Dunlop, my coach Zdenka gave me. It was an imported racket, and there was nothing else, only one type and you had to play with it. I'm sure because I was a slim girl, I already had a backaches and back-troubles when I was 18, and for four months I couldn't play at all. Sure there was some influence.
I : It was a huge damage for your body. It was destroying you, wasn't it? HM : Definitely.
.I : The only Grand Slam you never won was Wimbledon. Now looking back in time, why do you think you never reached Wimbledon? In that year 1981, you were only one match from No 1. Was it something in your mentality?
HM : Oh, no, no. I would like to say something about that No 1 thing. I've already told in some tennis magazine interview ; I won Australian Open 80, then I won Rolland Garros 81 and I played in the Wimbledon final 81, no wonder I should have been No 1 then. Everyone knew that, journalists knew, players knew. Unfortunately the WTA started changing the ranking rules at that time, so I couldn't be the No.1 according to these new rules. I couldn't do anything about it. It hurt me but I got over it. Regarding to Wimbledon, you know, everytime when you want something so much, as I wanted since I started playing tennis, plus my father kept telling me that I would win it somday, sometimes ... it would be the only thing you couldn't reach. It's pity I played in the final twice... Maybe Elizabeth or Markem will make it for me..
I : These are your children.
HM : They are my children.
I : Still, as the biggest lose, or at least I read it somewhere, you take the legendary Štvanice match, 1986; it was a Fed Cup match, you played against, at that time, exile, Martina Navrátilová , who came from the States, it is a well known story here, the audience were supporting her, not you ...
HM : Yes..I : Though you played as a Czech representative, but it was because they wanted to show the protest against the communist regime. It wasn't against you, there was nothing personal in it, but you felt it that way, then. How long did it take you too understand it, to realize it, to get over it? .HM : That day, when we entered the court with Martina, I still believe that it would be, like, half to half, or at least some people would support me. But it was very hard for me to realize it. Actually it took a long time for me to get over it. It was the worst day in my career, because I also grew up here, I was always glad to come back here, and I had great relationships with people here. So it was very hard to make out, but many people tried to explain to me the way as you are saying, like, "it was never against me," it was totally against the regime. I respect Martina for all she reached by herself anyway. I got over it and I do not mind any more.
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I : Your father, a former great sprinter, Vilém Mandlík, once told us about you: "She is hot-tempered, impulsive, sometimes very open, but honest and uncompromising. She had to fight for everything. Those persons think that everything must be as they like it." Are you such a person? .
HM: Yes, I am. But I think I've changed a lot, since my children were born. Sometimes, in my career, it complicated my life. My father taught me to be just like this, be honest and uncompromise. But I've learned that you sometimes have to accept grey thing, there is not only black or white in the world. I am still honest inside, but I try to change a bit since.
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I : You watch out for paying more attention.
HM : Yes.
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I : Well, when I met you in a Tennis Club in Konstruktiva where I invited you here for this interview, you were there with your children. I saw someone else training them. Why was it not you?
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HM : I tried that, of course, but it didn't work well. My children just do not listen to me (laugh). I am very impulsive person, so I didn't want to have more troubles with them at home. I think it mightbe better that I keep a distance while they 're training tennis. I found a Czech trainer for them in the States. He is a very nice person so that we can talk about tennis in a good way. Yes, things go well for us.
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I : You have two kids, twins. Has any of them inherited your famous offensive serve & volley tennis?
HM : Well, they prefer to play the ball in the base line now. But it is a question of the type of a given personality. If they are impulsive enough, I'm sure they will start to run the net quickly. I want my kids to be like this. Same thing can be said on to other players, too. Yeah, I'd love to see my children hitting volleys.
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I : You seem to be doing pretty well now. Is there anything that you would like to change if you could when you look back?
HM : In my life or in tennis?
I : Well, both.
HM : No, no, not both.
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I : Okay, in your life.
HM: In my life, well, I think I would play for a longer (laugh)....
Well, in my life... I think I better keep them as it was. Maybe I would admit some things earlier to myself.
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I : The last question. It's a little bit delicate.
Why did you stop your frienship with Jana Novotná?
What happened between you two?
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HM : We didn't decide to stop meeting each other. She also lives in Florida, but ... even I told her many times, like "Jana, call me," she never called me. She didn't ask anything about my children. But I didn't think that there was a serious problem between us. When we meet at some tournaments, US Open or Wimbledon, we speak to each other about what she does, what I do, and so on.
I : Didn't you do anything bad to her?
HM : (laugh) I hope I didn't.
I : (laugh)
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I : Our guest tonight was a famous tennis player, Hana Mandlíková.
Thank you for coming here tonight.
I wish you luck and many new talents. Good bye.
HM : Good bye.
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I : Well, this was all for tonight.
Have a nice evening.
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(End)
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Less than a year separates the two women, but Mandlikova is now a little less sprightly about the court than Austin.
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Hana Mandlikova in Wimbledon 2008
Result : T. Austin & K. Rinaldi Stunkel def. H. Mandlikova & Jo Durie 6-1, 6-0
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