Yannick Noah

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Yannick Noah

-
Country	France
Residence	-
Date of birth	May 18, 1960
Place of birth	Sedan, France
Height	6 ft 4 in (193 cm)
Weight	180 lbs (81 kg)
Turned Pro	1977
Retired	1996
Plays	Right-handed
Career Prize Money	US$3,440,660
Singles
Career record:	476-210
Career titles:	23
Highest ranking:	3 (7-Jul-86)
Grand Slam results
Australian Open	-
French Open	W (1983)
Wimbledon	-
U.S. Open	-
Doubles
Career record:	213-109
Career titles:	16
Highest ranking:	1 (25-Aug-86)
Infobox last updated on: January 23, 2007.

Yannick Noah (born May 18, 1960, Sedan, Ardennes, France) is a former professional tennis player from France. He is best remembered for winning the men's singles title at the French Open in 1983, and as a highly-successful captain of France's Davis Cup and Fed Cup teams. Since his retirement from the game, Noah has remained in the public eye as a popular music performer and as the co-founder of a charity organization for underprivileged children with his mother. In a song titled "Métis(se)" Noah refers to being a métis, which is the French term "mixed," used notably to describe someone who is of both white European and black African ancestry. He is of Cameroonian and French descent.

Contents 1 Tennis career 2 Post-tennis career 3 Family 4 Grand Slam singles final 4.1 Win (1) 5 Grand Slam record 6 Singles titles (23) 7 External links

[edit] Tennis career

Noah turned professional in 1977, and won his first top-level singles title in 1978 in Manila.

Noah became France's most prominent tennis hero in 1983, becoming the first Frenchman in 37 years to win the French Open. He dropped only one set during the two-week long tournament, and defeated the defending-champion Mats Wilander in straight sets in the final 6-2, 7-5, 7-6. Noah also became only the second black male to win a Grand Slam singles event (after Arthur Ashe).

Especially endearing to French (and indeed many other) spectators was Noah's penchant for one particular tactic: when he was at the net and a lob was hit over his head, he would turn his back to the net, race back and attempt – often successfully – to hit the ball between his legs with his back still towards the net. [1] Even today, when a player attempts such a move in a televised tournament, commentators often mention Noah's name.

During his career, which spanned almost two decades, Noah captured a total of 23 singles titles and 16 doubles titles. His career-high singles ranking was World No. 3 in 1986.

Noah won the French Open men's doubles title in 1984 (with compatriot Henri Leconte). He was also the men's doubles runner-up at the 1985 U.S. Open (with Leconte), and the 1987 French Open (with compatriot Guy Forget). In August 1986, Noah attained the World No. 1 doubles ranking, which he would hold for a total of 19 weeks. He remains the last native to have won the French Open men's singles title.

Noah played on France's Davis Cup team for eleven years, with an overall win-loss record of 39-22 (26-15 in singles, and in 13-7 doubles). In 1982, he was part of the French team which reached the Davis Cup final, where they were defeated 4-1 by the United States.

Nine years later, in 1991, Noah captained the French team which won the Davis Cup for first time in 59 years, defeating a heavily-favoured US team 3-1 in the final. This feat was repeated in 1996, when France defeated Sweden 3-2 in the final.

In 1997, Noah captained France's Fed Cup team to its first-ever victory in that competition.

Noah was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2005

[edit] Post-tennis career

Since retiring from playing tennis, Noah has developed a career as a popular singer, performing throughout Europe. He began his music career in 1991 with the album Black or What, featuring the popular track "Saga Africa" which he made the stadium sing with his players after the famous Davis Cup final win.

Noah made music news in the summer of 1997 with a new single entitled "Oh Rêve". His adaptation of "La Marseillaise" – originally written by Rouget de Lisle in 1792 and adopted as the French national anthem – succeeded in stirring controversy. The pacifist reworking of the strongly patriotic message of "La Marseillaise" led to protests from several war veterans' associations. However, it is now largely accepted, if not loved, as is Serge Gainsbourg's own take on the anthemn^{[citation needed]}.

In collaboration with Jean-Jacques Goldman, Noah released a second album in 2000 entitled simply Yannick Noah, and in October 2006, scored a major French radio airplay hit with the single Donne-moi une vie from a new album entitled Charango.

In 2005, Noah performed at Bob Geldof's Live 8 concert – a fundraiser aimed at alleviating poverty in Africa.

Noah is very active in charity work. He supports 'Enfants de la Terre', a charity run by his mother, Marie-Claire, and founded 'Fête le Mur' in 1996, a tennis charity for underprivileged children.

Despite his social concerns, it has been reported that Noah is a fiscal resident of Monaco, in order to avoid paying taxes in France^{[citation needed]}.

[edit] Family

Yannick is the son of Zacharie Noah, a former Cameroonian football star who played professionally for Sedan Torcy (France) in the 1960s and became a hero by leading the side to the French Cup, and Marie-Claire, a former captain of the French national women's basketball team.

From his former marriage to Cécilia Rhode (Miss Sweden 1978), Yannick has two children, Joakim and Yélena. The 6'11" Joakim plays college basketball for the 2006 NCAA national champions, the University of Florida Gators, and is expected to be a high NBA Draft pick when he leaves college for the National Basketball Association.

From his former marriage to model Heather Stewart-Whyte, Noah has two children named Elijah and Jénayé. He has also a son, Joalukas, with French producer Isabelle Camus who is currently his wife.

[edit] Grand Slam singles final

[edit] Win (1)

Year	Championship	Opponent in Final	Score in Final
1983	French Open	Mats Wilander	6-2, 7-5, 7-6

[edit] Grand Slam record

Australian Open

• Singles semi-finalist: 1990

French Open

• Singles champion: 1983
• Doubles champion: 1984 (partnering Leconte)
• Doubles runner-up: 1987 (partnering Forget)

Wimbledon

• Singles 3rd Round: 1985

US Open

• Singles quarter-finalist: 1983, 1985, 1989
• Doubles runner-up: 1985 (partnering Leconte)

[edit] Singles titles (23)

• 1978 – Manila, Calcutta

• 1979 – Nancy, Madrid, Bordeaux

• 1981 – Richmond WCT, Nice

• 1982 – La Quinta, South Orange, Basel, Toulouse

• 1983 – Hamburg, Madrid, French Open

• 1985 – Rome, Washington, Toulouse

• 1986 – Forest Hills, Wembley

• 1987 – Lyon, Basel

• 1988 – Milan

• 1990 – Sydney Outdoor

[edit] External links

• ATP Tour profile for Yannick Noah
• International Tennis Hall of Fame profile
• tenniscorner.net profile
• Biography as pop musician, from Radio France Internationale

French members of the International Tennis Hall of Fame
Jean Borotra (1976) | Jacques Brugnon (1976) | Philippe Chatrier (1992) | Henri Cochet (1976) | Francoise Durr (2003) | Pierre Etchebaster (1978) | René Lacoste (1976) | Suzanne Lenglen (1978) | Yannick Noah (2005)