Anna Kournikova


Country Russia
Residence Miami, Florida, USA
Date of birth June 07, 1981 (age 25)
Place of birth Moscow, Soviet Union
Height 1.73 m (5 ft 8 1/4 in)
Weight 56 kg (123 lb)
Turned Pro 1995
Retired 2003
Plays Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Career Prize Money US$3,584,662
Singles
Career record: 209-129
Career titles: 0
Highest ranking: 8 (20 November 2000)
Grand Slam results
Australian Open QF (2000)
French Open 4r (1999)
Wimbledon SF (1997)
U.S. Open 4r (1996, 1998, 1999)
Doubles
Career record: 200-71
Career titles: 13
Highest ranking: No. 1 (22 November 1999)

Anna Sergeyevna Kournikova (Russian: Анна Сергеевна Курникова (listen (help·info)), Ánna Sergéyevna Kúrnikova; born June 7, 1981) is a retired Russian professional tennis player and model. Gaining renown for her beauty and waist-length blonde hair as well as her tennis game, she became one of the best known tennis players worldwide, even among those who do not follow the game. At the peak of her fame, fans looking for images of Kournikova made her name (or misspellings of it) one of the most common search strings on Google.

An only child, she was born in Moscow, Soviet Union to Alla and Sergei Kournikov; her family later emigrated to the United States. Presently, she resides in Miami, Florida.

Kournikova's major-league tennis career has been curtailed for the past several years, and possibly ended, by serious back and spinal problems. She has had some success at the singles game, but her specialty has been doubles, where she has at times been the world's #1 doubles player. With Martina Hingis as her partner, she won Grand Slam titles in Australia in 1999 and 2002.

Kournikova's playing style fits the profile for a doubles player, and is complemented by her height. She has been compared to such players as Pam Shriver and Peter Fleming. Based on their supermodel looks, Hingis and Kournikova facetiously referred to themselves as the "Spice Girls of Tennis".

Tennis career

Kournikova follows through on a two-hand backhand.

Trained from an early age at the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy.

At ages 13 and 14, Kournikova made headlines in international junior tennis, winning several tournaments including the 1995 Italian Open. She was 14 years old when she ended 1995 as Junior European Champion Under 18 and ITF Junior World Champion Under 18.

Kournikova debuted in professional tennis at age 14 in the Fed Cup for Russia, the youngest player ever to participate and win. At age 15, she reached the fourth round of the 1996 U.S. Open, only to be stopped by then-top ranked player, Steffi Graf.

Kournikova was a member of the Russian delegation to the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, Georgia. In 1997, as a 16-year-old, she reached the semi-finals of Wimbledon, where she lost to the eventual champion, Martina Hingis by a score of 6-3, 6-2. 1998 was her breakthrough year, when she broke into the WTA's top 20 rankings for the first time and scored impressive victories over Martina Hingis, Lindsay Davenport, and Steffi Graf. Kournikova's two Grand Slam doubles titles came in 1999 and 2002, both at the Australian Open in the Women's Doubles event with partner Martina Hingis, with whom she played frequently starting in 1999.

Kournikova proved a successful doubles player on the professional circuit, winning 16 tournament doubles titles, including two Australian Opens and being a finalist in mixed doubles at the U.S. Open and at Wimbledon, and reaching #1 ranking in doubles in the Women's Tennis Association tour rankings. Her pro career doubles record was 200-71. However, her singles career plateaued after 1999. For the most part, she managed to retain her ranking between #10 and #15 (her career high singles ranking was #8), but her expected finals breakthrough failed to occur; she only reached four finals out of 130 singles tournaments, never in a Grand Slam event, and never won one. As a player, Kournikova was noted for her footspeed and aggressive baseline play and excellent angles and dropshots; however, her flat, high-risk groundstrokes tended to produce high numbers of errors and her serve was sometimes unreliable in singles. Her singles record is 209-129.

Her final playing years were marred by a string of injuries, especially back injuries, which caused her ranking to erode gradually. Kournikova has not played on the WTA tour since 2003, but still plays exhibition matches for charitable causes.

In late 2004, she participated in three events organized by Elton John and by fellow tennis players Serena Williams and Andy Roddick. In January 2005, she played in a doubles charity event for the Indian Ocean tsunami with John McEnroe, Roddick, and Chris Evert.

In November 2005, she teamed up with Martina Hingis, playing against Lisa Raymond and Samantha Stosur in the WTT finals for charity. Kournikova is also a member of the Sacramento Capitals in the World Team Tennis (WTT), playing doubles only.

In a feature for ELLE magazine's July 2005 issue, Kournikova stated that if she were 100% fit, she would like to come back and compete again.

Media publicity

Kournikova on the July 2000 cover of Sports Illustrated

Most of Kournikova's fame has come from the publicity surrounding her personal life as well as numerous modeling shoots. During her debut at the 1996 U.S. Open at the age of 15, Kournikova's physical beauty was noticed by the world and soon pictures of her appeared in numerous magazines all over the planet.

Kournikova's marital status has been an issue on several occasions. There were conflicting rumors about whether or not she was engaged to hockey player Pavel Bure. There were reports that she married NHL hockey star Sergei Fedorov in 2001. Kournikova's representatives have denied this, but Fedorov stated in 2003 that the couple had married and since divorced. Kournikova currently has a relationship with pop star Enrique Iglesias (in whose video, "Escape", she appeared), and rumors that the couple had secretly married appeared in 2003 and again in 2005. Kournikova herself has consistently refused to directly confirm or deny rumors about the status of her personal relationships.

In 2000, Kournikova became the new face for Berlei's shock absorber sports bras range, and appeared in the highly successful "only the ball should bounce" bill board campaign. Photographs of her scantily-clad form have appeared in various men's magazines, including more than one much-publicized Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issues (2004 – 2005), where she posed in bikinis and swimsuits, and in other popular men's publications such as FHM and Maxim. She has not posed topless or nude for any publications, but nude photos taken by paparazzi during a Caribbean vacation do exist.

Kournikova was named one of People's 50 Most Beautiful People in 1998, 2000, 2002, and 2003 and was voted "hottest female athlete" and "hottest couple" (with Iglesias) on ESPN.com. In 2002 she also placed first in FHM's 100 Sexiest Women in the World in U.S. and UK editions.

By contrast, ESPN — citing the degree of hype as compared to actual accomplishments as a singles player — ranked Kournikova 18 in its "25 Biggest Sports Flops of the Past 25 Years".

Kournikova had a small role (as a motel manager) in the 2000 film Me, Myself and Irene, starring Jim Carrey.

A man named William Lepeska once swam naked across Biscayne Bay in search of her Miami Beach home after attempting to contact Kournikova via a number of letters and e-mails. When apprehended by the police, Lepeska violently resisted arrest.

Kourinikova is a supporter of the Geelong Cats in the Australian Football League, a team she chose simply because she liked Cats, according to how she answered a question at an Australian Open press conference.

In the card game of poker, a hand with an Ace and King has become known as an "Anna Kournikova" (Looks good but never wins...).

WTA Tour titles (16)

Singles finalist (4)

  • 1998: Miami (lost to Venus Williams)
  • 1999: Hilton Head (lost to Martina Hingis)
  • 2000: Moscow (lost to Martina Hingis)
  • 2002: Shanghai (lost to Anna Smashnova)

Doubles (16)

  • 1998
    • Tokyo [Princess Cup] (w/Seles)
  • 1999
    • Australian Open, Season-Ending Championships, Indian Wells, Rome, Eastbourne (all w/Hingis)
  • 2000
    • Season-Ending Championships, Filderstadt, Zürich, Philadelphia (all w/Hingis), Gold Coast (w/Halard-Decugis), Hamburg (w/Zvereva)
  • 2001
    • Sydney (w/Schett), Moscow (w/Hingis)
  • 2002
    • Australian Open (w/Hingis), Shanghai (w/J.Lee)

Grand slams

Tournament 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 1997 1996 Career
Australian Open 2r 2r 1r QF 4r 4r 4r 1r 0
French Open - 1r - 2r 4r 3r 3r - 0
Wimbledon - 1r - 2r 4r - SF - 0
US Open - 1r - 3r 4r 4r 2r 4r 0
Grand Slam Win-Loss 1-1 0-4 4-1 7-4 12-4 9-3 8-4 3-1 44-22
Year End Ranking 305 35 74 8 12 13 32 57

How to pick up a girl?

Sometimes picking up a girl may seem to be embarrassing, difficult and impossible especially if you are doing it for the first time. For most men it is not easy to approach a girl. So is it that hard to pick up a girl?











I think if you are confident, skillful, articulate, have sufficient courage, and are armed with the right techniques then it is not that difficult to approach or pick up a girl.











There are several things you need to take into consideration. Be positive:














Women do not like men who are pessimists and have a negative approach to life. Actually nobody like people like that. Hence, it is necessary to have a positive attitude and show it when it comes to picking up a girl.











Smile:




















"A smile increases your face value", and surprisingly it costs nothing. Therefore, especially while approaching any girl, smile constantly.











Utilize What You Have: Most men dwell on what they don't possess. They feel that they don't have the charm and seductive attraction some guys have. Sometimes they regret that they don't have a nice body.











But haven't you seen many men who are good looking but don't have any girl. Be confident and try to capitalize on the assets that you have! Make Her Laugh: Making your woman laugh will do the trick. Laughter attracts women easily and in less time. If you are successful in making her laugh a lot, you have already won the battle.











Don't Fear Rejection:



















Most men remain unsuccessful in the task of picking up a girl because they fear rejection. The fear of rejection is the main cause behind the failure. Take every rejection as the next step to success and learn from your mistakes.











Every time you get rejected, you are moving one level up, because once you become comfortable with girls saying no, your fear of rejection will be gone. So instead of getting hurt, be confident after every rejection. Remember, the guys who get rejected the most are the ones who leave with the most numbers!











Be A Good Listener: It always pays to be a good listener. Observe the things she is saying as well as your surroundings. Stop worrying about what to say next and focus your attention on listening.











During the conversation, always make a direct eye contact with her. Believe me she will give you leads about what she would like to talk about, in essence, telling you want to say next.











Increase A Women's Interest:


















If a woman is interested in carrying on a conversation with you or meeting with you, you have actually won half the battle.











You must concentrate on indulging in a conversation she would be interested in. Never fake it. Try to speak about a general topic, a situation or try to listen to her opinions on something really interesting.











Gain Respect: Remember that a woman would never like to sleep with a man she does not respect. It is necessary to gain respect by showing respect to a woman and making her realize that you genuinely like her company. Get Her Phone Number: Getting the phone number or contact details of a girl is important when it comes to picking her up. Now this is a difficult and time-consuming task. You must work hard in order to be successful in your goal.











Use Good Pick Up Lines:


















When picking up a girl, you can never go wrong with a great pick up line. The best way to start a conversation with a woman is to say "hi". This is the best opening line.











Now, once she responds, try to proceed further. For example, if you are at a music concert, a theater or a sports arena. You can continue the conversation by saying

































Now, if a woman is near you, you need to try out the famous 'goodbye introduction'. You can start with "Hi, I am just leaving. But before I do, I would like to introduce myself to the most wonderful woman around". And then see the result.











Perhaps it could become one of the best pick up lines. There are bright chances that she would show some interest (that otherwise was not possible) and you will get introduced to each other. Before leaving you can ask, "Nice talking to you. I'd like to talk to you again, is there a number I can reach you at?"











Believe me guys this always works and brings much better results. There is hardly any girl that would say "no", because you are giving her a chance and just asking her number to reach at. So use this technique to pick up any girl of your choice, and see the result.











Why? Because here her left-brain starts working and she would be under some hypnotic mode where she can't afford to say "no" because that will mean there is not a number that she can be reached at.











Moreover, it also makes you more original than every other idiot that asks for her number directly.












No doubt, the question how to pick up a girl seems to be difficult and it really is. However, you can simplify it by utilizing the powers you have, and following the tips and techniques mentioned above. All the best!

credited by Alexander Faust