Gustavo Kuerten (born September 10, 1976 in
Florianópolis, Santa Catarina) is a former World No.
1 tennis player from Brazil. He won the French Open
three times between 1997 and 2001.
Kuerten is also known as "Guga", an affectionate
nickname which is a common abbreviation of the name
"Gustavo" in Portuguese-speaking countries.
Kuerten was born in Florianópolis in southern Brazil
to a family of German extraction.
He began playing tennis when he was six, an early
start to a life and career marked by family tragedy.
His father, a former amateur tennis player, died of
a heart attack in 1985, when Kuerten was only 8
years old, while umpiring a juniors match in
Florianópolis. His youngest brother, suffered
prolonged oxygen deprivation and consequently
irreparable brain damage during birth and as a
result suffered from mental retardation and severe
physical disability until his death in 2007. Kuerten
was deeply affected by his brother's daily
struggles, later donating the entire prize money
from one tournament he has won every year of his
professional career so far to a hometown NGO that
provides assistance for people suffering from
similar disabilities. He gave every trophy he won to
his younger brother as a souvenir, including the
three miniature replicas of the French Open men's
singles trophy.
He was heavily influenced as a very young player by
Oscar Wegner, then teaching in Florianopolis, who
coached him for eight years. When he was 14 years
old, Kuerten met Larri Passos who would be his coach
for the following 15 years. Passos convinced Kuerten
and his family that the youth was talented enough to
make a living out of playing tennis. The two started
traveling all over the world to participate in
junior tournaments. Kuerten turned professional in
1995.
Kuerten has made an announcement that he expects
2008 to be his final year of play. Kuerten has
chosen to devise his schedule around tournaments
that have sentimental value to him, such as the
French Open where he lost in the first round, the
Brasil Open, and the Miami Masters. After two
first-round defeats in singles (Costa do Sauípe, l.
to Berlocq and Miami, l. to Grosjean), Kuerten won
his first ATP Masters Series level match in a long
time, partnering Nicolas Lapentti, in Miami, against
Feliciano Lopez and Fernando Verdasco.
