Alexander Zverev voted athlete of the year!
Alexander Zverev played the best season of his career with the Olympic victory in Tokyo as the absolute highlight. After being voted "Sportsman of the Year", the tennis star has already set his sights on the next big goals.
by SID
last edit:
Dec 19, 2021, 08:49 pm
The tears of joy after the unbelievable semi-final victory against Dominator Novak Djokovic, the amorous looks at his gold medal during the national anthem - Alexander Zverev did not let go of these Olympic feelings of happiness even six months after his great moment in Tokyo. "I see my gold medal at home every day," said the tennis star recently: "The emotions come up automatically."
This year he had a lot of successes in store for the hamburger. Zverev collected six tournament victories, including two Masters titles and the triumph at the ATP Finals in Turin, when he crowned himself the best of the best at the end of the season. And yet victory outshines everything else. "The Olympic gold medal," the 24-year-old proudly emphasized, "will always be above everything."
Third tennis player after Becker and Stich
Zverev also owes her that he was voted Germany's "Sportsman of the Year" on Sunday as the successor to ice hockey star Leon Draisaitl. It had taken a long 30 years for a tennis player to be back at the top of the prestigious choice. Wimbledon champion Michael Stich won in 1991, icon Boris Becker won four times (1985, 1986, 1989, 1990).
However, this summer Zverev managed what neither Becker nor Stich or any other German had ever achieved: triumph in the Olympic men's singles. The world number three still shows how great the importance of this coup is, even when it comes to his choice of clothing. Be it on the training court, in the weight room or even last on the beach in the Maldives with his new girlfriend Sophia Thomalla - Zverev prefers to wear his Olympic clothing from "Team D".
"The gold medal at the Olympic Games is the greatest thing you can achieve in sport. A Grand Slam cannot compete with that, and neither can another ATP tournament - it's just like that," said Zverev, who was also a father's father this year . His ex-girlfriend Brenda Patea gave birth to their daughter Mayla in March.
Zverev wants to convince with sporty headlines
And yet Zverev's private life is still accompanied by unsightly turbulence. The allegations of another ex-partner about domestic violence are still in the room, the professional organization ATP announced an investigation in October. She has not yet presented a result.
But in any case, Zverev wants to convince again with sporty headlines in 2022, the big goals have already been set. "I've had success at every level," he said, "but there's one thing missing." Zverev wants to celebrate his first Grand Slam victory in the coming season, which has the first highlight in January with the Australian Open, which he has been chasing for so long.
"I can only say one thing: I will do everything for it," explained Zverev: "I will put in as much work as possible and open my ass for it to happen." And by the way, he would also like to become number one in the world as the second German after Boris Becker.
These are the only two gaps that the top German player still has in his already impressive collection of titles - even if the Tokyo gold medal is above all else for him.