2015 ATP Best Off Court Moments
2015 ATP Best Off Court Moments
Dec212015
| The top three – how the public voted | |
|---|---|
| Andy Murray (tennis) | 361,446 |
| Kevin Sinfield (rugby league) | 278,353 |
| Jessica Ennis-Hill (athletics) | 79,898 |
ATPWorldTour.com highlights the best off-court moments from the 2015 season
Do you have a favourite? Have your say on MyATP.
Federer Fan Surprise
On her first visit to watch Roger Federer play in person, a lucky fan at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals received the opportunity of a lifetime: an hour with the great Swiss.
The winner of 1049 tour-level matches also caught up with a giant from another sport ahead of the Shanghai Rolex Masters,. The Swiss met American basketball legend Michael Jordan in an event organised by Nike.
Crazy cool to be with #23 in China #ShanghAirJordan ? pic.twitter.com/EA4ThTAAou
— Roger Federer (@rogerfederer) October 13, 2015
Isner Grilled
Rarely has John Isner faced such a media grilling as when Caroline Wozniacki joined his first-round US Open press conference.
Djokovic On Top Of The World
Novak Djokovic, en route to his best year ever on the court, did plenty off the court at well.
The 2015 US Open champion posed for Vogue, aced the traditional post-tournament media tour in New York City, got in on the fun with a professional impersonator, and even had time to visit the Great Wall of China.
Horsing Around
David Ferrer and Kevin Anderson, the top two seeds at the Erste Bank Open 500 in Vienna, visited the Spanish Riding School at Vienna’s Imperial Hofburg Palace.
“This is quite unique,” Anderson said. “My experience around horses has been very limited. But it’s been very nice getting behind the scenes. There’s a lot of history. This building is obviously over 500 years old and it’s all so beautiful.”
Anderson and Ferrer are not the only ATP World Tour stars who enjoyed spending time with horses. In February, Santiago Giraldo got in the saddle at the Jockey Club Brasileiro, the site of the Rio Open.
Downing Street Bound
After claiming Great Britain’s first Davis Cup title since 1936, captain Leon Smith and his players were invited to meet with Prime Minister David Cameron at No. 10 Downing Street in London.
Read Part 1 – Novak’s Biggest Fan
Read Part 2 – Murray Undercover
Novak Celebrates 2015 US Open Win
Open Gallery
After Andy Murray reveals a newspaper article said he was “duller than a weekend in Worthing” he is invited to visit the seaside resort.
As we celebrate the holidays and with the 2016 season right around the corner, let’s take a look back at a fantastic and historic 2015 season right here on wtatennis.com.
Andy Murray is looking forward to an “exciting” 2016 after being crowned BBC Sports Personality of the Year for a second time.
The Scot was a clear winner after he led Great Britain to their first Davis Cup team tennis triumph for 79 years.
Next year Murray, 28, is set to become a father for the first time, will attempt to defend his Olympic title and seek a third Grand Slam triumph.
“The scheduling will be difficult next year but it’s exciting,” he said.
Murray became only the fourth person to win the BBC award twice – following boxer Henry Cooper and F1 drivers Nigel Mansell and Damon Hill – after first winning in 2013.
He finished a clear first in the public vote, with rugby league veteran Kevin Sinfield second and heptathlete Jessica Ennis-Hill narrowly beating boxer Tyson Fury to third place.
| The top three – how the public voted | |
|---|---|
| Andy Murray (tennis) | 361,446 |
| Kevin Sinfield (rugby league) | 278,353 |
| Jessica Ennis-Hill (athletics) | 79,898 |
Murray said he had never been to Worthing, the Sussex town which featured in his self-deprecating acceptance speech.
“A friend sent me a message the other day with an article saying, ‘Andy Murray is duller than a weekend in Worthing’, which I thought was a bit harsh – on Worthing,” he said after collecting the trophy.
Murray has just returned from a training camp in Dubai and will seek a first Australian Open title in Melbourne in January, while his wife Kim is expecting their first child.
“That becomes my number one priority. In February, me and my wife’s lives will change forever, and I’m sure that will be in a positive way,” he said.
“A lot of the players are able to mix and balance the two in a positive way.
“Novak Djokovic is a father and just had his best year ever – his baby was born this year – and Roger Federer has four children and is still travelling at 34 years old, so you can do it.
“There’s no reason for it to have a negative effect on my tennis. I’m really looking forward to it.
“As you get older, it’s important to have distractions. I do put a lot of time and effort into tennis and spend a lot of time away from my family, which is something I miss.”
A second win provided further evidence that the popularity of Murray, who won the US Open and Olympic gold in 2012 before triumphing at Wimbledon a year later, has increased significantly in recent years.
“The last five or six years, through all of my Wimbledon runs, obviously the Olympics was unbelievable, every time I’ve played Davis Cup home matches, the support has been great,” he said.
“I’ve had absolutely zero complaints at all. Tonight I guess proved that.
“You can never please everybody but I have tried my whole career to be myself as much as I could.
“I love competing for my country and my results when I’m playing for my country are much better than when I’m playing on my own. I do genuinely love it.”
The build-up to the show was dominated by media coverage of controversial comments on homosexuality and women by world heavyweight champion Fury.
At the ceremony, the Manchester fighter said: “If I’ve said anything in the past that’s hurt anybody, I apologise.”
Murray, a big boxing fan, said he had stayed up to watch Fury beat Wladimir Klitschko in November the night before he sealed GB’s Davis Cup triumph over Belgium in Ghent.
“I guess it’s up to the public to decide. Not everyone has to agree with what he says but that’s freedom of speech and people have the right to disagree'” said Murray.
“His achievement, winning against Klitschko… nearly everyone said was almost impossible. He proved everyone wrong.”
| More on Sports Personality | |
|---|---|
| Murray wins Sports Personality award | Rollason winner wows crowd |
| GB Davis Cup winners take team honour | McCoy receives lifetime award |
| NI boss O’Neill is Coach of the Year | Tribute to stars lost in 2015 |
| Relive Sports Personality 2015 | Fury sorry after comments controversy |
A vibrant sell-out crowd of 7,500 watched the show, which was held in Northern Ireland for the first time, at the SSE Arena in Belfast.
Presenter Gary Lineker cut his hand on the trophy early on, gymnast Max Whitlock performed a routine on the top of a piano and One Direction star Niall Horan was among the celebrities who presented a trophy.
But for many the star of the show was eight-year-old Bailey Matthews, who was presented with the Helen Rollason Award for courage in the face of adversity.
A video of Matthews, who has cerebral palsy, completing his first triathlon unaided after abandoning his walking aid to cross the finishing line has been viewed on Facebook more than 27 million times.
Given a standing ovation in the arena, he prompted more applause when interviewed on BBC Radio 5 live.
When presenter John Inverdale said to him: “Look at that trophy, that’s yours, how amazing is that?” He replied: “I don’t think the people listening will be able to see it.”
Asked if he had any ambitions and what he would like to be in the future, Matthews said: “Me.”
| Sports Personality – recent winners | |
|---|---|
| See the full Sports Personality roll of honour | |
| 2014: Lewis Hamilton (F1) | 2009: Ryan Giggs (football) |
| 2013: Andy Murray (tennis) | 2008: Sir Chris Hoy (cycling) |
| 2012: Sir Bradley Wiggins (cycling) | 2007: Joe Calzaghe (boxing) |
| 2011: Mark Cavendish (cycling) | 2006: Zara Phillips (equestrian) |
| 2010: AP McCoy (horse racing) | 2005: Andrew Flintoff (cricket) |
The road to the top isn’t always smooth – Chan Yung-Jan, who’s back in the Top 10 on the WTA Doubles Rankings, gives us a glimpse into how she changed her destiny.
Andy Murray’s dominant 2015 season was honoured on Sunday, as the Scot was named the BBC Sports Personality of the Year (SPOTY) for the second time in three years.
Also the award recipient in 2013 following his historic run to the Wimbledon title, Murray was named the British sportsman of the year once again. The 28 year old is the year-end World No. 2 in the Emirates ATP Rankings after posting a 71-14 win-loss mark and guiding Great Britain to its first Davis Cup crown in 79 years.
“Thank you very much,” said an emotional Murray. “I didn’t expect this. I dedicate my life to this sport and I work extremely hard every day to make you proud.”
Following a final run at the Australian Open – his eighth at the Grand Slam stage – Murray would claim his first tour-level clay-court crown in Munich. He immediately followed that with an upset win over Rafael Nadal in Madrid for his 10th Masters 1000 title and later notched No. 11 with victory over Novak Djokovic in Montreal. Murray would also enjoy success on grass, earning a fourth Queen’s Club title, en route to qualifying for the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals for an eighth successive year.
Countrymen Kyle Edmund, Jamie Murray, James Ward, Dominic Inglot, Daniel Evans and Davis Cup captain Leon Smith were in attendance as Murray won the coveted award with more than 35 per cent of the public vote. The Davis Cup squad also won Team of the Year. The Scot was presented with the trophy by Northern Ireland boxing legend Barry McGuigan, in front of a sell-out 7,500 crowd at the SSE Arena in Belfast. He received more than 1,000,000 votes in total, with rugby star Kevin Sinfield finishing second with 278,353 and heptathlete Jessica Ennis-Hill third with 78,898.
Murray is the fourth different tennis player to win the award in its 62-year history, after Ann Jones in 1969, Virginia Wade in 1977 and Greg Rusedski in 1997.
Belinda Bencic and Karolina Pliskova led the OUE Singapore Slammers to the International Premier Tennis League championship, upsetting Sania Mirza’s Micromax Indian Aces.
Andy Murray has been voted the BBC Sports Personality of the Year for the second time in three years.
The 2013 winner helped make history by guiding Britain’s tennis team to a first Davis Cup victory for 79 years.
Rugby League star Kevin Sinfield was runner-up, with heptathlete Jessica Ennis-Hill third.
The Scot won 361,446 of the 1,009,498 votes cast (35%), with Sinfield getting 278,353 (28%) and Ennis-Hill 78,898 (8%).
Murray was presented the award by Irish boxing legend Barry McGuigan, in front of a sell-out 7,500 crowd at the SSE Arena in Belfast.
A two-time major winner in his career, this year he reached the final of the Australian Open and the semi-finals of both Wimbledon and the French Open.
The 28-year-old, who finished the year second in the world tennis rankings, won all 11 of his Davis Cup rubbers, three in the final against Belgium.
He was also named Young Sports Personality of the Year in 2004.
An emotional Murray said: “Thank you very much. I didn’t expect this.
“A friend sent me a message the other day with an article saying: ‘Andy Murray is duller than a weekend in Worthing,’ which I thought was a bit harsh – on Worthing.
“Congratulations to everyone who was involved tonight. This has been a five-year journey – we were down in the bottom level of tennis and now we’re number one.
“I dedicate my life to this sport and I work extremely hard every day to make you proud.”
One of the biggest cheers of the night was saved for Northern Ireland football manager Michael O’Neill, who was given a standing ovation as he was presented with the Coach of the Year award after guiding his country to their first major finals for 30 years.
The winner of the Helen Rollason Award, eight-year-old Bailey Matthews, who has cerebral palsy, captured the hearts of the crowd as he asked for them to stop cheering and received another big ovation as he said a small speech.
World heavyweight champion boxer Tyson Fury, a contender for the main award, was jeered by a section of the crowd after recent comments he made about women and homosexuality.
But during the show he apologised for comments he made that might have “hurt people”.
The other winners in Sunday’s awards ceremony were:
Overseas Sports Personality of the Year: Dan Carter: An integral part of the New Zealand team that beat Australia 34-17 to win the World Cup in October.
Young Sports Personality of the Year: Ellie Downie: The 16-year-old gymnast won bronze in the all-around at the European Championships to make her the first female gymnast to win an individual all-around medal for Great Britain.
Coach of the Year: Michael O’Neill: The Northern Ireland manager helped his country end a 30-year absence from tournament football by sealing a spot at Euro 2016 last month.
Lifetime Achievement: AP McCoy: Twenty-time champion jump jockey AP McCoy, 41, who retired in April after a record-breaking career.
Helen Rollason: Bailey Matthews: The eight-year-old, who has cerebral palsy, completed his first triathlon unaided.
Sport’s Unsung Hero: Damien Lindsay: The west Belfast youth football coach played a huge role in his local community in his work with the St James Swifts Football Club.