She was born in Russia on the 7th June, 1981 to Sergei and Alla Kournikova. Sergei,
a natural athlete who wrestled professionally and coached tennis part-time, encouraged
her to play sports from an early age, as did Alla.
Anna received her first tennis racquet at the age of 5 as a Christmas present. She
joined Moscow's Soklniki Park and soon was a member of the prestigious Spartak Tennis
Club.
There she was coached by the husband of Russian pro Olga Morozova. By the age of eight,
Anna began to catch the eye of local tennis scouts.
When the ATP Tour established a tournament in Moscow in 1990, Anna Kournikova was
first able to demonstrate her potential. She competed in the junior event, which
swiftly led to a management deal.
Two years later Anna jetted off to Florida, to train with coach Nick Bolletierri at
his famous tennis academy.
At 14, she was the youngest ever winner of a Federation Cup match and won the
European Championships and Italian Open juniors. At the close of 1995, she was ITF
Junior World Champion and ranked number 1 in the world for the junior game.
There was plenty of media attention when Anna Kournikova burst onto the profesional
tour in 1996 and reached the fourth round in the U.S. Open.
She followed this up with a semifinal appearance on her Wimbledon debut in 1997,
losing to Martina Hingis.
Though a top ten singles player, Anna's only Grand Slam title to date came in the
1999 Australian open Ladies' Doubles with Hingis.
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– She is shocked that her reported husband Sergei Fedorov has been arrested for drink-driving.
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– Reckoning she's hot stuff on the tennis court - because she's more feminine than rivals Venus and Serena Williams.
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– She has been sent death threats by a man who police believe is an obsessed fan of actress Liz Hurley.
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– She is a friend of Martina Hingis and joins partys with her.
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