Newsletter

Francesca Schiavone publishes a book telling her memories

More than ten years have passed since Francesca Schiavone lift the title of champion in Roland Garros 2010. A season that pushed the Italian to conquer her first and only Grand Slam, to go down in history on French clay and to become a legendary player for her country’s tennis. A decade later, the life of the Milanese has changed a lot, going through hard times such as retirement or overcoming cancer. So many chapters had to be told that it was best to publish it all in one book, which already takes place in the market: “My rebirth”. Thanks to the journalist Enrico Maria Riva and your account Twitter, we have been able to discover some of the most interesting passages.

Like, for example, how Francesca’s personality changed over the years. “When I was younger I was an extremely shy person, almost incomprehensible. I hardly spoke to people, I was immersed in my own battle, I didn’t know the meaning of a friendship because I didn’t know how to communicate ”, assumes the Italian. “Then, the journalists only worried about who was at the top. They watch you, they look at you if you are capable of giving that last effort, but they only attend you if you prevail in the attempt. Only you know how heavy the backpack is. you drag along the way ”, he points out in his memoirs.

In total, there were twenty years as a professional for a player who won eight individual titles, in addition to signing the quarterfinals in all the Grand Slams in the individual category and the semifinals in the doubles category. In addition to winning three Federation Cups. “My story with this sport is about passion, happiness, fulfillment. Tennis gave me everything and never took anything from me. I have always lived at the same speed as a tennis ball, I have been to all parts of the world, I have never had my own house, although along this path I felt that I had thousands ”, he relates with that experience that only the years.

The book focuses primarily on how he overcame all difficulties, including those that came after tennis as well. But it was as a player that she found her greatest reward, winning Roland Garros and touching the sky of Paris. “After my first round at Roland Garros 2010, my physical trainer and my physiotherapist told me that they would run in their underwear on the Champs Elysees if at the end of those two weeks I was champion of the tournament. The night we celebrated the title, I was kidnapped from the feast of champions and dragged to the Champs-Elysées to see them run half naked, ”he recalls with a smile.

Of course, not even in the happiest fortnight of his career do you think that he got rid of fighting with his demons. “After beating Dementieva in the semi-finals, I remember crying for two whole days. He didn’t know why, but he couldn’t stop. I kept thinking about what people would think if they saw me at that moment, even if they couldn’t help me. What was Stosur doing at the moment? I couldn’t be preparing in this way for such an important match, there were five hours before the final started and I didn’t want to play it ”, Francesca surprises.

A reflection that defines her as an athlete

This is the life of the tennis player, with historical moments that we all see on television and other not so epic moments that are left in the shadows, for the privacy of the player. This is how Schiavone was and is, a warrior of life. “After every defeat, I always thought the same thing: ‘I have to make changes, I have to work harder‘. After each victory, the thinking did not change much: ‘What is the next challenge? I have to work harder‘, compares Francesca. “How many perfect games do we play each season? They can be counted on the fingers of one hand, all the rest are battles.”

.

Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Trending