Gigi Fernández

Country	United States
Residence	Lake Mary, Florida, USA
Born	(1964-02-22) February 22, 1964 (age 48) San Juan, Puerto Rico
Height	1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)
Weight	65.7 kg (145 lb; 10.35 st)
Turned pro	November 1983
Retired	November 1997
Plays	Right-handed
Career prize money	US$4,681,906
Int. Tennis HOF	2010 (member page)
Singles
Career record	270–232
Career titles	2
Highest ranking	17 (October 6, 1991)
Grand Slam Singles results
Australian Open	4R (1990, 1993)
French Open	2R (1986–87, 1991)
Wimbledon	SF (1994)
US Open	QF (1991, 1994)
Doubles
Career record	664–184
Career titles	69
Highest ranking	1 (March 4, 1991)
Grand Slam Doubles results
Australian Open	W (1993, 1994)
French Open	W (1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997)
Wimbledon	W (1992, 1993, 1994, 1997)
US Open	W (1988, 1990, 1992, 1995, 1996)
Other Doubles tournaments
Olympic Games	Gold medal (1992, 1996)
Last updated on: September 18, 2009.

Medal record
Women's tennis
Competitor for the USA
Olympic Games
Gold	1992 Barcelona	Women's doubles
Gold	1996 Atlanta	Women's doubles
Competitor for  Puerto Rico
Pan American Games
Silver	1983 Caracas	Singles
Silver	1983 Caracas	Doubles

Beatriz "Gigi" Fernández (born February 22, 1964, in San Juan, Puerto Rico) is a former professional tennis player, the first female athlete from her native Puerto Rico to turn professional,^[1] the first Puerto Rican woman to ever win an Olympic gold medal and the first to be inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame.^[2]

Fernandez won 17 Grand Slam doubles titles and two Olympic gold medals representing the United States of America, and reached the World No. 1 ranking in women's doubles. She reached a career high singles ranking of 17 in 1991. Since retiring from the professional tour in 1997 at the age of 33,^[3] Fernández has been a tennis coach and entrepreneur.

Career[link]

Fernandez was recognized primarily as a doubles specialist during her professional career. Fernández won a non-calendar year doubles Grand Slam with 17 Grand Slam women's doubles title – six French Open, five US Open, four Wimbledon, and two Australian Open winning at least one Grand Slam title every year from 1988–1997, except 1989, and for three straight years winning three of the four Grand Slam doubles titles in the same year (1992–1994). She won 14 of her 17 Grand Slam titles partnering Natasha Zvereva; their partnership is the second most successful doubles pair in Grand Slam history after Martina Navratilova and Pam Shriver in the Open era.^[4]

In mixed doubles, Fernández was the runner-up in three of the four Grand Slam mixed doubles events in 1995 (Australian Open, Wimbledon, and US Open) partnering Cyril Suk. Fernández captured 68 career titles in women's doubles and reached the World No. 1 doubles ranking in 1991 and attained the No. 1 ranking again in 1993, 1994 and 1995.^[5] She won a total of 69 doubles titles during her career.

Fernández represented the United States at the Olympic Games in 1992 (Barcelona) and 1996 (Atlanta). She teamed with Mary Joe Fernandez (no relation) to win the women's doubles gold medal on both occasions. The first gold medal was won against the home team of Conchita Martínez and Arantxa Sánchez Vicario with the King and Queen of Spain in the audience. The two medals are front and center on Fernández's desk, along with a car license plate that reads "DBL GLD".^[6]

Fernández represented Puerto Rico when San Juan played host to the Pan Am Games in 1979. Just 15, Fernández won a bronze medal. In 1982 at the Central American-Caribbean Games in Cuba, she teamed up with Marilda Juliá to win doubles gold and won a silver medal in the singles as well. She represented Puerto Rico at the 1984 Olympics.

Fernández was also on the United States team that won the Fed Cup in 1990.

In singles, Fernández reached as high as World No. 17. She also won two top-level titles and reached the semifinals at Wimbledon in 1994 (ranked 99 becoming the lowest-ranked grand Slam singles semi-finalist at Wimbledon^[7]) and the quarterfinals at the US Open in 1991 and 1994.

Fernández retired from the professional tour in 1997. By far the most successful tennis player in the history of Puerto Rico, Fernández was named Puerto Rico's "Female Athlete of the Century" in 1999.^[6]

On July 12, 2010, Fernandez was inducted in the International Tennis Hall of Fame alongside Zvereva.^[5]

Personal life[link]

Fernández was born in San Juan. Her father Tuto was a well-known doctor in Puerto Rico.^[8] Her cousin José Ferrer was a famous Puerto Rican actor and director.^[8] Fernández started playing tennis when she was seven. When she turned professional in 1983, she become Puerto Rico's first-ever female professional athlete. Prior to turning professional, she played tennis for one season at Clemson University, in 1982–83, where she was a singles and doubles All-American and reached the National Collegiate Athletics Association singles final.

Since retiring from the tour, Fernández has worked as a tennis coach. She has coached players including the former World No. 1 doubles player Rennae Stubbs, Lisa Raymond, and Samantha Stosur. She has also coached for the Puerto Rican national team and the University of South Florida. Fernández also remains active in corporate hospitality events and participates in fundraisers throughout the country.

Fernández earned a Bachelor of Arts in psychology from the University of South Florida in 2003. She later graduated from Rollins College's Crummer School of Business where she earned a Master of Business Administration. She is the mother of twins, Karson Xavier and Madison Jane, and the partner of retired professional golfer and current WWE executive Jane Geddes.^[9] She presently resides in Lake Mary, Florida with Geddes and their children.

Most recently, Fernandez started a company called Baby Goes Pro which produced the first in a DVD series that introduces young children to sports, encouraging them to lead active lifestyles, build character, and begin a lifelong love of sports.

Grand Slam finals (26)[link]

Women's doubles wins (17)[link]

Year	Championship	Partner	Opponents in Final	Score in Final
1988	US Open (1)	Robin White	Patty Fendick Jill Hetherington	6–4, 6–1
1990	US Open (2)	Martina Navratilova	Jana Novotná Helena Suková	6–2, 6–4
1991	French Open (1)	Jana Novotná	Larisa Savchenko Neiland Natasha Zvereva	6–4, 6–0
1992	French Open (2)	Natasha Zvereva	Conchita Martínez Arantxa Sánchez Vicario	6–3, 6–2
1992	Wimbledon (1)	Natasha Zvereva	Larisa Savchenko Neiland Jana Novotná	6–4, 6–1
1992	US Open (3)	Natasha Zvereva	Larisa Savchenko Neiland Jana Novotná	7–6(4), 6–1
1993	Australian Open (1)	Natasha Zvereva	Pam Shriver Elizabeth Smylie	6–4, 6–3
1993	French Open (3)	Natasha Zvereva	Jana Novotná Larisa Savchenko Neiland	6–3, 7–5
1993	Wimbledon (2)	Natasha Zvereva	Larisa Savchenko Neiland Jana Novotná	6–4, 6–7(9), 6–4
1994	Australian Open (2)	Natasha Zvereva	Patty Fendick Meredith McGrath	6–3, 4–6, 6–4
1994	French Open (4)	Natasha Zvereva	Lindsay Davenport Lisa Raymond	6–2, 6–2
1994	Wimbledon (3)	Natasha Zvereva	Jana Novotná Arantxa Sánchez Vicario	6–4, 6–1
1995	French Open (5)	Natasha Zvereva	Jana Novotná Arantxa Sánchez Vicario	6–7(6), 6–4, 7–5
1995	US Open (4)	Natasha Zvereva	Brenda Schultz-McCarthy Rennae Stubbs	7–5, 6–3
1996	US Open (5)	Natasha Zvereva	Jana Novotná Arantxa Sánchez Vicario	1–6, 6–1, 6–4
1997	French Open (6)	Natasha Zvereva	Mary Joe Fernandez Lisa Raymond	6–2, 6–3
1997	Wimbledon (4)	Natasha Zvereva	Nicole Arendt Manon Bollegraf	7–6(4), 6–4

Women's doubles runner-ups (6)[link]

Year	Championship	Partner	Opponents in Final	Score in Final
1991	Australian Open (1)	Jana Novotná	Patty Fendick Mary Joe Fernandez	7–6(4), 6–1
1991	Wimbledon (1)	Jana Novotná	Larisa Savchenko Neiland Natasha Zvereva	6–4, 3–6, 6–4
1995	Australian Open (2)	Natasha Zvereva	Jana Novotná Arantxa Sánchez Vicario	6–3, 6–7(3), 6–4
1995	Wimbledon (2)	Natasha Zvereva	Jana Novotná Arantxa Sánchez Vicario	5–7, 7–5, 6–4
1996	French Open	Natasha Zvereva	Lindsay Davenport Mary Joe Fernandez	6–2, 6–1
1997	US Open	Natasha Zvereva	Lindsay Davenport Jana Novotná	6–3, 6–4

Mixed doubles runner-ups (3)[link]

Year	Championship	Partner	Opponents in Final	Score in Final
1995	Australian Open	Cyril Suk	Natasha Zvereva Rick Leach	7–6(4), 6–7(3), 6–4
1995	Wimbledon	Cyril Suk	Martina Navratilova Jonathan Stark	6–4, 6–4
1995	US Open	Cyril Suk	Meredith McGrath Matt Lucena	6–4, 6–4

WTA Tour titles (71)[link]

Singles (2)[link]

No.	Date	Tournament	Tier	Surface	Opponent in the final	Score
1.	October 26, 1986	Singapore	VS	Hard (i)	Mercedes Paz	6–4, 2–6, 6–4
2.	April 18, 1991	Albuquerque, US	IV	Hard	Julie Halard-Decugis	6–0, 6–2

Doubles (69)[link]

• 1985: Washington (with Martina Navratilova), Miami (with Navratilova), Toronto (with Navratilova), Fort Lauderdale (with Robin White)
• 1987: U.S. Indoor Championships (with Lori McNeil), Newport (with McNeil), Mahwah (with McNeil)
• 1988: Tokyo Outdoor (with Robin White), US Open (with Robin White)
• 1989: Newport (with McNeil), Toronto (with Robin White), Tokyo Doubles Championships (with Robin White), Filderstadt (with Robin White)
• 1990: Tokyo/Pan Pacific (with Elizabeth Smylie), Hamburg (with Navratilova), Los Angeles (with Jana Novotná), US Open (with Navratilova), New England (with Helena Suková)
• 1991: Brisbane (with Novotná), Chicago (with Novotna), Light n' Lively Doubles (with Suková), French Open (with Novotna), Oakland (with Patty Fendick), Indianapolis (with Fendick)
• 1992: Houston (with Fendick), French Open (with Natasha Zvereva), Wimbledon (with Zvereva), Barcelona Olympics (with Mary Joe Fernandez), US Open (with Zvereva), Oakland (with Zvereva), Philadelphia (with Zvereva)
• 1993: Australian Open (w/Zvereva), Delray Beach (w/Zvereva), Light n' Lively Doubles (w/Zvereva), Hilton Head (w/Zvereva), Berlin (with Zvereva), French Open (with Zvereva), Eastbourne (with Zvereva), Wimbledon (with Zvereva), San Diego (with Suková), Leipzig (with Zvereva), Filderstadt (with Zvereva), Virginia Slims Championships (with Zvereva)
• 1994: Australian Open (with Zvereva), Chicago (with Zvereva), Miami (with Zvereva), Italian Open (with Zvereva), Berlin (with Zvereva), French Open (with Zvereva), Eastbourne (with Zvereva), Wimbledon (with Zvereva), Filderstadt (with Zvereva), Philadelphia (with Zvereva), Virginia Slims Championships (with Zvereva)
• 1995: Tokyo/Pan Pacific (with Zvereva), Hamburg (with Martina Hingis), Rome (with Zvereva), French Open (with Zvereva), San Diego (with Zvereva), Los Angeles (with Zvereva), US Open (with Zvereva), Filderstadt (with Zvereva)
• 1996: Tokyo/Pan Pacific (with Zvereva), Atlanta Olympics (with Mary Joe Fernandez), San Diego (with Conchita Martínez), US Open (with Zvereva)
• 1997: Sydney (with Arantxa Sánchez Vicario), French Open (with Zvereva), Wimbledon (with Zvereva)

See also[link]

	Puerto Rico portal
	Biography portal
	Tennis portal

• List of Puerto Ricans

References[link]

External links[link]

• Gigi Fernández at the Women's Tennis Association
• Gigi Fernández at the Fed Cup
• http://www.league-ncr.com/library/history/heritage11.html

See also[link]

• List of famous Puerto Ricans