Post by tall_one on Oct 7, 2005 10:30:54 GMT
Kafelnikov must lose weight to get proper farewell
MOSCOW, Oct 5 (Reuters) - Former world number one Yevgeny Kafelnikov, who retired last year, must lose excess weight if he is to get a proper farewell, Russia's tennis chief Shamil Tarpishchev said on Wednesday.
Kafelnikov was scheduled to have an official send-off at last year's Kremlin Cup, the tournament he won for five years in a row between 1997 and 2001, but the ceremony was postponed until this year's event which starts on Monday.
Asked if the former French and Australian Open champion would get his long-awaited farewell this year, Tarpishchev said: "He must lose weight first."
The 31-year-old has gained considerable weight since he quit tennis at the end of 2003, reportedly rising 20 kg (about three stone) to 103 kg (about 16 stone).
Since his retirement, Kafelnikov has turned his attention to golf, making his debut on the European Tour by taking part in the $500,000 Russian Open in August. He finished last in the 155-strong field at 40-over 184.
"He must get on the court and play to have a proper farewell and to do that he needs to trim down," Tarpishchev said.
Tarpishchev did not specify if he meant playing singles or doubles.
Earlier this year, Russian media reported that Kremlin Cup organisers were planning to hold a celebrity doubles match, involving either Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov or Russia's first president Boris Yeltsin alongside Kafelnikov and Tarpishchev.
Both Luzhkov and Yeltsin are keen tennis players.
Kafelnikov, the most successful Russian player of all time, has special memories of the Kremlin Cup.
In 2001, he won the annual Moscow tournament for the fifth consecutive time, joining Swedish great Bjorn Borg and Hungary's Balazs Taroczy as the only players who have won the same event five years in a row since tennis became professional.
Borg won Wimbledon from 1976 to 1980 while Taroczy was the winner of the Hilversum tournament from 1978 to 1982.
MOSCOW, Oct 5 (Reuters) - Former world number one Yevgeny Kafelnikov, who retired last year, must lose excess weight if he is to get a proper farewell, Russia's tennis chief Shamil Tarpishchev said on Wednesday.
Kafelnikov was scheduled to have an official send-off at last year's Kremlin Cup, the tournament he won for five years in a row between 1997 and 2001, but the ceremony was postponed until this year's event which starts on Monday.
Asked if the former French and Australian Open champion would get his long-awaited farewell this year, Tarpishchev said: "He must lose weight first."
The 31-year-old has gained considerable weight since he quit tennis at the end of 2003, reportedly rising 20 kg (about three stone) to 103 kg (about 16 stone).
Since his retirement, Kafelnikov has turned his attention to golf, making his debut on the European Tour by taking part in the $500,000 Russian Open in August. He finished last in the 155-strong field at 40-over 184.
"He must get on the court and play to have a proper farewell and to do that he needs to trim down," Tarpishchev said.
Tarpishchev did not specify if he meant playing singles or doubles.
Earlier this year, Russian media reported that Kremlin Cup organisers were planning to hold a celebrity doubles match, involving either Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov or Russia's first president Boris Yeltsin alongside Kafelnikov and Tarpishchev.
Both Luzhkov and Yeltsin are keen tennis players.
Kafelnikov, the most successful Russian player of all time, has special memories of the Kremlin Cup.
In 2001, he won the annual Moscow tournament for the fifth consecutive time, joining Swedish great Bjorn Borg and Hungary's Balazs Taroczy as the only players who have won the same event five years in a row since tennis became professional.
Borg won Wimbledon from 1976 to 1980 while Taroczy was the winner of the Hilversum tournament from 1978 to 1982.