At 19 years old, Monica Seles was the top women’s tennis player globally. However, that same year marked the decline of her career.
Monica Seles was born in 1973 into a Hungarian family in Novi Sad, former Yugoslavia. At the age of 11, she emerged victorious at the Orange Bowl Tournament in Miami and subsequently relocated to the US.
She initiated her professional tennis journey at 14 and secured a win in a tournament in Houston against Chris Evert in May 1989. By the age of 16, she had already attained the 6th position on the WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) ranking.
The Commencement of Her Extraordinary Career
By the age of 16 and a half, Monica Seles had become the youngest champion of the competition and claimed the top position on the WTA list. Merely a month later, in 1990, Monica defeated Steffi Graf and secured victory at Roland Garros in Paris. Despite Graf’s widespread dominance, Seles emerged triumphant.
This adolescent prodigy clinched nine Grand Slams and 53 titles in just a few seasons, amassing a total of $16 million in earnings. From January 1991 to February 1993, Monica reached 33 out of 34 finals, emerging victorious in 22 of them. She boasted a remarkable track record of 159 wins and 12 defeats, accounting for a staggering 92.9% win rate.
Monica Seles reigned over the tennis world until one fateful spring day when everything changed in the blink of an eye.
A Cowardly Surprise Attack on Her
The most infamous scandal in the history of tennis unfolded on 30th April 1993 when Monica was competing in a quarter-final match against Bulgarian Magdalena Maleeva in Hamburg.
During a drinks break in the second set, Seles leaned forward to have some water when she felt a sudden, excruciating pain in her back. She turned around to find a man with a cap smirking at her. Günter Parche, a zealous fan of Steffi Graf, thrust a 9-inch-long knife into Monica’s back. Although she experienced intense pain, she initially couldn’t comprehend the gravity of the situation. He launched another attack at her.
It was the early 1990s, and terrorist attacks were not commonplace. At the time, no one envisaged the possibility of an assault on a tennis player on the court. Matches were not perceived as precarious and in need of heightened security measures.
Seles had previously received threats due to her political affiliations.
Seles Sustains Severe Injuries, But Fortunately, the Knife Misses Her Spine
The assailant, a peculiar 38-year-old man, aimed to harm her and reinstate his beloved Steffi Graf as the number one player. Fortunately, his initial thrust narrowly missed Seles’s spine and vital organs.
“She was extremely fortunate,” remarked the tournament doctor, Peter Wind. “Neither her lungs nor shoulder blades were affected. Monica is still in shock and will be kept under observation overnight.”
Thankfully, Seles had a bodyguard who intervened to prevent Parche from attacking her again and restrained him firmly by the neck.
A timely call of “Time” from the referee indicated the end of the break, prompting Monica to lean over for another sip of water. Had she not done so, her wound would have been significantly deeper. Her spinal cord, heart, and lungs would have borne the brunt. Despite this, she was far from unscathed.
The spectators, who had previously been rooting against Seles, were aghast as they witnessed the young woman bent over on the court, her white tennis shirt tarnished with a crimson stain.
Accompanied by her mother and brother, Monica was swiftly rushed to the hospital. Steffi Graf paid her a visit before swiftly returning to the tournament. For both young women, tennis constituted the cornerstone of their lives.
The entire ordeal left Monica traumatized:
“I was at the pinnacle of my career,” she later recounted in an interview with Fast Company, “and the next moment, I’m in the hospital.”
In the initial weeks following the attack, she was unable to even move her hand. Although she aspired to resume her tennis career, oblivious to the enduring ramifications of the stabbing, the physical wound healed in less than a month, but the emotional toll lingered for years.
Günter Parche’s Plot to End Monica’s Career
Before the incident, her assailant had never ventured beyond his small town in East Germany. Nevertheless, on that fateful morning, Parche packed a sausage, 3,000 Deutsche marks, and a kitchen knife, brimming with determination to execute his plan for Steffi.
He harbored animosity towards Monica for three years, and now, a tipping point had been reached. He was even willing to stalk Seles to her next destination—Rome, if necessary.
Parche had withstood a deprived upbringing devoid of affection. At the age of eight, his unmarried aunt assumed responsibility for him, following which he never experienced love or companionship, nor did he forge any friendships or romantic connections. Following the unification of Germany, he lost his job at the Nordhausen motor factory.
For Parche, Steffi Graf was his sole guiding light. He meticulously tracked her every match on TV, adorning his wall with her magazine photos with the same meticulousness with which he groomed his hair. To this enigmatic individual, Steffi Graf was sacrosanct.
Upon witnessing 16-year-old Monica Seles conquer the indomitable Steffi in the finals of the Berlin tournament, Parche contemplated suicide. Subsequently, when Seles emerged triumphant at Roland Garros in 1990 and 1992, and in Australia in 1993, Parche’s anguish transformed into chronic torment, compelling him to act with the aim of incapacitating Seles permanently. Ultimately, he succeeded.
Steffi Graf visited Seles in the hospital in Hamburg that weekend, but their interaction thereafter was minimal. The Graf-Seles alliance was a far cry from the camaraderie exhibited by Evert and Navratilova, who would share a bagel while awaiting their face-off in a Grand Slam final.
Judicial Proceedings
During the trial, Parche expounded on Steffi’s eyes akin to diamonds and her hair reminiscent of silk, asserting that she had been sent by the heavens to the German nation—a deity worthy of adulation.
Occasionally, he would dispatch notes and flowers to her. Other times, he would correspond with any journalist who dared critique Graf’s performance. Such dissenters were sternly warned to exercise discretion in their evaluations of her, for he was her vigilant protector.
The expert witnesses in the court resolved that he was an obsessive individual afflicted by a severe personality disorder.
In the denouement, owing to his mental ailment, Parche received nothing more than a suspended sentence.
Despondency and Despair
Monica’s life never returned to its former state. Parche had achieved his objective, instilling a sense of fear in Monica that persisted for years. She no longer felt like a victor.
In addition to her weight gain, she grappled with an influx of other diagnoses. She was now contending with PTSD, anxiety, depression, and sleep disorders. Journalists at every press conference incessantly badgered her about her retirement plans and physique. Subsequently, Anna Kournikova and Maria Sharapova took center stage. For the first time in tennis, a player’s physical appearance became a crucial factor.
Ultimately, Monica was compelled to retire in 2003 due to her severe injuries. She briefly made a comeback to the court before ultimately retiring in 2008. She had deviated significantly from the resolute teenage girl who refused to cower in the face of adversity.
Nevertheless, she did not capitulate.
Monica Seles’s Resurgence
In 1995, Seles made a return to competitive tennis. The WTA decided to preserve her ranking as co-No. 1, alongside Graf. At her first tournament in Toronto, Seles secured the title without dropping a single set.
Subsequently, at the US Open, Seles delivered a stellar performance, progressing to the final where she engaged in a gripping three-set encounter with Graf, ultimately succumbing to a 7-6 (6), 0-6, 6-3 defeat. Despite her commendable display, characterized by her clinching the ninth, and ultimately, her final major trophy at the 1996 Australian Open, she was never the bold, intrepid player she had been prior to the stabbing.
Although it is challenging to ascertain the precise repercussions of a singular event, the trajectory of tennis history would indubitably have diverged markedly had this tragedy been averted.
A Fresh Chapter for Monica Seles
As she relinquished her top ranking and her father fell ill shortly after the assault, Seles was compelled to seek fulfillment outside the realm of tennis.
Following her father’s demise from cancer in 1998, Monica felt even further distanced from the professional sports arena. To convalesce, she commenced writing. The transformation of her mindset was gradual and arduous, yet ultimately efficacious. Freed from the pressures of living the life of a preeminent tennis player, her stress levels subsided. The era of what she terms as “emotional eating,” had come to an end.
In 2009, Seles published her book “Getting a Grip: On My Body, My Mind, My Self,” which ascended to the position of The New York Times bestseller. The book encapsulated her early ascent to the pinnacle of the sport and the abrupt derailing of her aspirations.
Her third book delves into the narrative of a young tennis player, Maya, whose life bears uncanny resemblance to that of Monica’s. It appears that even after nearly three decades, Seles is still processing the events of Hamburg in 1993.
Monica Seles Today
In 2009, Seles initiated a relationship with businessman Tom Golisano, culminating in their marriage in 2014. Presently, they are actively engaged in extending support to underprivileged children.
Seles has dedicated substantial efforts to the realm of mental health advocacy. In particular, she has openly addressed the Binge Eating Disorder that she developed following the stabbing. Furthermore, she has developed a penchant for rescuing dogs, having adopted several over the years.
Parting Reflection
In just a few years of her tennis career, Monica Seles ascended to the echelons of the most successful women players of all time. She was known for her unwavering psychological fortitude, even in the most daunting of circumstances on the court.
