- published: 31 Mar 2015
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Vitaliy "Vitalik" Vladasovich Grachyov (Russian: Виталий Владасович Грачёв, Vitalij Vladasovič Gračëv), better known by his stage name Vitas ( /ˈviːtɑːs/; Russian: Витас), is a Russian singer-songwriter.
Known for his high falsetto voice, he has been given the nickname "Prince of the Dolphin Voice" (海豚音王子, pinyin: Hǎitún yīn wángzǐ) in China. His music is often difficult to categorise, incorporating elements of techno, dance, classical, jazz, and folk music. His 2000 song, "Opera No. 2" ("Opera #2"; released as a single in 2001) has been forwarded frequently via the Internet, which accounts for much of his worldwide recognition. He designs his own stage costumes. DIVA (ДИВА) is the name of the band that accompanies Vitas during his concerts.
Vitas has achieved much notability through Russian television, and since 2005 his career has advanced into Asian markets. He has signed with entertainment labels such as Universal which distributes his music in Taiwan, and he has toured extensively in China and several other countries. He has performed duets with many other singers including Demis Roussos, Lucio Dalla, and Vitas' grandfather Arkadiy Davydovich Marantsman (Аркадий Давыдович Маранцман), with whom he sings "Friendship".
Vytautas Kevin Gerulaitis (July 26, 1954 – September 17, 1994) was a Lithuanian–American professional tennis player. He is known for winning the men's singles title at one of the two Australian Open tournaments held in 1977. Gerulaitis won the tournament held in December, while Roscoe Tanner won the earlier January tournament. Gerulaitis also won two Italian Open titles, in 1977 and 1979, and the prestigious WCT Finals in Dallas in 1978.
Gerulaitis led the Pittsburgh Triangles to the World Team Tennis championship title at Pittsburgh's Mellon Arena in 1975. He also won the men's doubles title at Wimbledon in 1975. He was a singles semi-finalist at Wimbledon in both 1977 and 1978. In 1977 he lost a long Wimbledon semi-final to his close friend and practice partner, Björn Borg 6–4, 3–6, 6–3, 3–6, 8–6. In 1977 Gerulaitis won the most significant title of his career at the Australian Open, when he defeated John Lloyd in the men's singles final in five sets.
In 1978 Gerulaitis won the year-end championship WCT Finals for the World Championship Tennis tour, beating Eddie Dibbs 6–3, 6–2, 6–1.