Miloslav Mečíř
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| Country |  Slovakia |
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| Residence | Prague, Czech Republic | |
| Date of birth | May 19, 1964 | |
| Place of birth | Bojnice, Czechoslovakia | |
| Height | m () | |
| Weight | 81 kg (178 lb) | |
| Turned Pro | 1982 | |
| Retired | 1990 | |
| Plays | Right-handed | |
| Career Prize Money | $2,632,538 | |
| Singles | ||
| Career record: | 262 - 122 | |
| Career titles: | 11 | |
| Highest ranking: | 4 (February 22, 1988) | |
| Grand Slam results | ||
| Australian Open | F (1989) | |
| French Open | SF (1987) | |
| Wimbledon | SF (1988) | |
| U.S. Open | F (1986) | |
| Doubles | ||
| Career record: | 100 - 54 | |
| Career titles: | 9 | |
| Highest ranking: | 4 (March 7, 1988) | |
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Infobox last updated on: February 21, 2007. |
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| Olympic medal record | |||
| Men's Tennis | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gold | 1988 Seoul | Singles | |
| Bronze | 1988 Seoul | Doubles | |
Miloslav Mečíř (IPA: [ˈmɪloslaf ˈmɛtʃi:r̝]) (born May 19 1964) is a former professional tennis player from Slovakia. He is best remembered for having won the men's singles Gold Medal at the 1988 Summer Olympics for the former Czechoslovakia, and for having played in two Grand Slam singles finals.
Career
Mečíř was born in Bojnice, Czechoslovakia now Slovakia.
He reached two ATP finals in 1984 and began 1985 by beating Jimmy Connors in the semi final at Philadelphia, before losing to World no. 1 John McEnroe in the final. He won his first top-level singles title in Rotterdam later that year, and ended 1985 ranked just outside the world's top 10.
He consolidated his position as a world class performer in 1986, beating rising Swede Stefan Edberg in straight sets at Wimbledon, before losing to defending champion Boris Becker in the quarter finals. He reached his first Grand Slam final at the US Open later that year, where he faced fellow Czechoslovakian, defending champion and World No. 1 Ivan Lendl. Lendl won the match in straight sets 6-4, 6-2, 6-0. The 1986 U.S. Open was notable for the fact that four players from Czechoslovakia competed in the two singles finals - Mečíř and Lendl, Helena Suková and Martina Navrátilová.
Mečíř further improved in 1987, winning six singles and six doubles titles. He met Lendl again in three high-profile matches that year, winning the final of the Lipton International Players Championships in Key Biscayne, Florida, while Lendl won the final of the German Open in Hamburg and the semi-finals of the French Open.
By this time, Mečíř's somewhat sedate playing style was known to frustrate a lot of the more powerful top-ranked players. The Swedes, in particular, were said to hate playing against him.
Mečíř was on top form at Wimbledon in 1988, where he defeated Swede Mats Wilander in the quarter-final. It was Wilander's only Grand Slam singles defeat of the year (he won the 1988 Australian Open, French Open and US Open) yet Mecir beat him 6-3 6-1 6-3, wooing the Wimbledon crowd with extraordinary display of stroke-making. Commentating on the match for the BBC, John Barrett noted that "the mental battle is certainly today being won by Mečíř - Wilander really doesn;t know what to do". He took a two-set lead in the semi-final against Edberg with a similar display, and later led by a break of serve in the final set, but Edberg eventually wore him down on the way to his first Wimbledon crown.
The highlight of Mečíř's career came later in 1988 when he was selected to represent Czechoslovakia in the Seoul Olympics. In the men's singles semi-finals he exacted revenge over Wimbledon champion Edberg, in an exciting five-set match 3-6, 6-0, 1-6, 6-4, 6-2. He then met Tim Mayotte of the U.S. in the men's singles final and won in four sets 3-6, 6-2, 6-4, 6-2 to claim the Gold Medal. He also won a Bronze medal in the men's doubles, partnering Milan Šrejber.
In 1989, Mečíř reached his second Grand Slam final at the Australian Open in Melbourne. Again he came up against Lendl and lost in straight sets 6-2, 6-2, 6-2. It was a tactical victory for Lendl, whose win saw him to reclaim the World No. 1 ranking from Wilander. After the match, Lendl apologized to the crowd, explaining that he and coach Tony Roche had decided the best tactic against Mečíř was to hit shots deep and down the centre of the court, denying his countryman the angles on which he thrived.
Mečíř was a member of the Czechoslovakian teams which won the World Team Cup in 1987 and
the inaugural Hopman Cup in 1989. He is currently the Slovak Davis Cup captain.
During his career, Mečíř won 11 singles titles and 9 doubles titles. His career-high world ranking in both singles and doubles was World No. 4. His total career prize-money earnings was US$2,632,538. His final career singles title came in 1989 at Indian Wells. His last doubles title was also won in 1989 in Rotterdam.
By the end of the 1989 season, Mečíř was suffering from a bad back injury and ertired in 1990, aged just 26.
Playing Style
Mecir was a finesse player whose career straddled the transition from wooden and metal rackets towards modern graphite composites. He was noted for his touch shots as well as the ability to disguise his shots, particularly on his two-handed backhand. His court coverage and graceful footwork earned him the nickname "the big cat". The French called him "the prestidigitateur" (the conjuror).
Many top played used to cite Mecir as the one player they most enjoyed watching because of his beautifully simple style and touch.
Trivia
 |
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Wikipedia guidelines. The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones. |
- His 1986 U.S. Open final appearance was the last major final to see a player still using a wooden racket.
Grand Slam singles finals
Runner-ups (2)
| Year | Championship | Opponent in Final | Score in Final |
| 1986 | U.S. Open |  Ivan Lendl |
4-6, 2-6, 0-6 |
| 1989 | Australian Open | Ivan Lendl |
2-6, 2-6, 2-6 |
Singles titles (11)
|
| No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Opponent in the final | Score |
| 1. | March 18, 1985 | Rotterdam, Netherlands | Carpet |  Jakob Hlasek |
6-1 6-2 |
| 2. | April 29, 1985 | Hamburg, Germany | Clay |  Henrik Sundstrom |
6-4 6-1 6-4 |
| 3. | April 4, 1986 | Kitzbuhel, Austria | Clay |  Andres Gomez |
6-4 4-6 6-1 2-6 6-3 |
| 4. | August 4, 1986 | Auckland, |
Hard |  Michiel Schapers |
6-2 6-3 6-4 |
| 5. | January 26, 1987 | Sydney Outdoor, Australia | Hard |  Peter Doohan |
6-2 6-4 |
| 6. | February 23, 1987 | Miami, U.S. | Hard | Ivan Lendl |
7-5 6-2 7-5 |
| 7. | April 7, 1987 | Carpet | 
John McEnroe |
6-0 3-6 6-2 6-2 | |
| 8. | July 13, 1987 | Stuttgart Outdoor, Germany | Clay | Jan
Gunnarsson |
6-0 6-2 |
| 9. | July 27, 1987 | Hilversum, Netherlands | Clay |  Guillermo Perez-Roldan |
6-4 1-6 6-3 6-2 |
| 10. | September 20, 1988 | Seoul Olympics, South Korea | Hard |
Tim Mayotte |
3-6 6-2 6-4 6-2 |
| 11. | March 13, 1989 | Indian Wells, U.S. | Hard |  Yannick Noah |
3-6 2-6 6-1 6-2 6-3 |
External links
- ATP Tour profile for Miloslav Mečíř
| Tennis at the Summer Olympics • Olympic Champions in men's tennis |
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1896: John Pius Boland • 1900: Lawrence Doherty • 1904: Beals Wright • 1908: Josiah Ritchie, Arthur Gore (indoors) John Pius Boland • 1912: Charles Winslow, André Gobert (indoors) • 1920: Louis Raymond • 1924: Vincent Richards • 1988: Miloslav Mečíř • 1992: Marc Rosset • 1996: Andre Agassi • 2000: Yevgeny Kafelnikov • 2004: Nicolás Massú |
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