Cilly Aussem
Aussem in 1927
|
|
| Full name | Cäcilia Edith Aussem |
|---|---|
| Country (sports) |
 Weimar Republic Nazi Germany (1933–1934) |
| Born |
4 January 1909 Cologne, German Empire |
| Died | 22 March 1963 (aged 54) Portofino. Italy |
| Retired | 1935 |
| Plays | Right-handed |
| Singles | |
| Highest ranking | No. 2 (1930) |
| Grand Slam Singles results | |
| French Open | W (1931) |
| Wimbledon | W (1931) |
| Doubles | |
| Grand Slam Doubles results | |
| French Open | F (1931) |
| Grand Slam Mixed Doubles results | |
| French Open | W (1930) |
| Wimbledon | QF (1930) |
Cilly Aussem (German pronunciation: [ˈʦiːli̯ə ˈaʊ̯sm]; 4 January 1909 – 22 March 1963) was a German female tennis player.
She was the first German, male or female, to win the singles title at Wimbledon in 1931. She also won the women's single titles at the French Championships and German Championships in 1931. Aussem's coach and mixed doubles partner was Bill Tilden. They won the mixed doubles title at the 1930 French Championships.
According to A. Wallis Myers of The Daily Telegraph and the Daily Mail, Aussem was ranked in the world top ten in 1928, 1930, 1931, and 1934, reaching a career high of World No. 2 in those rankings in 1930 and 1931 behind Helen Wills Moody.
Aussem was born in Cologne on 4 January 1909, the daughter of a wealthy salesman Johann Joseph 'Jean' Aussem and Ulrike Franziska 'Helen' Wisbaum. At the age of fourteen, she returned to Cologne after spending several years in Geneva getting a boarding school education. It was at this time that she started taking tennis lessons at the local club KTHC Stadion Rot-Weiss, driven by her mother, who was the first to notice her talent. She contacted Roman Najuch, the reigning world professional champion. Najuch referred Aussem to Willy Hanneman, a tennis coach from Cologne. Hannemann taught Aussem a great sliced backhand, a precisely placed serve, and an effective drop shot. In 1925 she won the junior singles title at the German Championships in Erfurt and was ranked nr. 6 nationally.
Aussem won the German Championships for the first time in 1927, when she was 18 years old. In Hamburg she defeated reigning champion Ilse Friedleben in the final in straight sets. But Aussem, who was described as a graceful, small, and psychologically sensitive girl, seemed incapable of withstanding the mental and physical pressures of competitive sports. Usually, the family traveled to exclusive places all over Europe. During the family's summer vacation at the French Riviera, Aussem's ambitious mother asked the world's best player, Bill Tilden, for advice. After having a look at small, shy, Cilly he replied: "My dear lady, Cilly will become a great champion, if you take the next train back to Germany!"
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Wikipedia