Twenty five years ago this summer, Boris Becker won Wimbledon at 17. It is difficult to believe that it has been so many years already since a teenager from Germany took over men's tennis and became the youngest champion at Wimbledon.
"In many ways, I remember it like it was yesterday. But then when I go back on the tennis court, it does feel like 25 years ago. The actual tennis player, the one who is 17 years old, I haven't seen that guy for a long time," Becker said.
A Wimbledon champion at 17, Becker grew into manhood under the watchful eye of the public. He has described the experience similar to "sitting on the lavatory while the whole world is watching."
"What I remember most from winning Wimbledon at 17 was that people suddenly looked at me differently -- they thought I was from planet Mars. They thought that I had done something I wasn't supposed to do, something that shouldn't have been possible. But I did it. And then I did it at 18, just to make the point."
While Becker resides mostly in Switzerland, he considers Wimbledon is his favorite home, living only a stone’s throw away from Center Court.
"Living so close by, I'm reminded every day of my history here, and I like that," said Becker, who has rented the house for just over a year; making him Baron Boris of Wimbledon.
Becker could live anywhere, but he feels most at ease living close to the Wimbledon lawns. The locals at Wimbledon don’t bother Becker, allowing him to lead a relatively private life.
"The residents in Wimbledon are very respectful. I think they may be even a little proud that I've made the decision to spend a lot of time here, to be part of the Village and the community. They don't bother me at all when I go to the supermarket or to the butcher or the local bank. I hardly ever sign autographs when I'm in Wimbledon. This is home, right here in Wimbledon."
"Thanks to TV, people all across the world saw these very personal moments in my life, and because they participated by watching it, they thought that they were part of it," he recalled. "The whole of Germany went absolutely crazy and adopted me as their son. On one side, it was great and wonderful, and I respect that a lot. On the other side, it was a big burden because I happened not to be their son -- they adopted me as their favorite son.”
Winning the Wimbledon title when he was even a couple years older could have drastically altered the way his life played out. "Oh, yes, very different, it wouldn't have been as chaotic, it wouldn't have been as crazy," Becker said. "It's the power of the media.”
"If you win the greatest tournament of all at 17, when you lose for the first time, it's the biggest loss, like the whole country is questioning you: 'Why did you lose this match?' They don't reason any more. It's just pure emotion. And so life becomes very difficult for the young player, as he has to try to explain something that's impossible to explain. People lose perspective when you are successful at such a young age. Eventually, you have to fail."
Becker lost early at Wimbledon in 1987, with reporters fueling the defeat with drama. Becker’s nonchalance quieted a bit of the commotion: "No one died out there, I just lost a tennis match,” he stated.
The third Wimbledon title for Becker came in 1989, and his last appearance was at the finals in 1995.
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