Justine Henin

• Residence: Monte Carlo, Monaco
• DOB: 1 June 1982
• Birthplace: Liege, Belgium
• Height: 5'6" (1.68 m)
• Weight: 130 lbs. (57 kg)
• Plays: Right–handed; one-handed backhand

Biography

Justine Henin was born 1 June 1982 and was a professional Belgian tennis player. In May 2008, Henin announced her immediate retirement from professional tennis. She was 25 years old and ranked World No. 1 at the time of her retirement. Billie Jean King has said that "pound for pound, Henin is the best tennis player of her generation." She announced her return to competitive tennis on September 22, 2009.

Henin won 41 WTA singles titles and more than US$19 million in prize money. Seven of those titles were Grand Slam singles titles, including four French Open titles, one Australian Open title, and two US Open titles. She also won the year-ending Sony Ericsson Championships twice and the singles gold medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics. Tennis experts cite her mental toughness, the completeness and variety of her game, her footspeed and footwork, and her one-handed backhand (which John McEnroe has described as the best single-handed backhand in the women's or men's game) as the principal reasons for her success.

Henin announced her immediate retirement from professional tennis on 14 May 2008, and requested the Women's Tennis Association to remove her name from the rankings immediately. Her announcement was a surprise because Henin was still ranked World No. 1 and was considered the favorite for the 2008 French Open, where she would have been the 3-time defending champion. She said she felt no sadness about her retirement because she believed it was a release from a game she had focused on for twenty years. She also said that in the future, she will be concentrating on charity and her tennis school.

Career History