Country (sports) | Italy |
---|---|
Residence | Rome, Italy |
Born |
Milan, Italy |
27 April 1972
Height | 1.72 m (5 ft 7 1⁄2 in) |
Turned pro | 1988 |
Retired | 24 October 2005 |
Plays | Right-handed (one-handed backhand) |
Prize money | $3,688,252 |
Singles | |
Career record | 469–370 |
Career titles | 3 |
Highest ranking | No. 11 (20 May 2002) |
Grand Slam Singles results | |
Australian Open | 4R (2004, 2005) |
French Open | 4R (2001, 2002) |
Wimbledon | QF (2003) |
US Open | 4R (2002) |
Doubles | |
Career record | 269–255 |
Career titles | 8 |
Highest ranking | No. 24 (21 June 1999) |
Grand Slam Doubles results | |
Australian Open | 3R (1997) |
French Open | QF (1994, 1998, 2004) |
Wimbledon | QF (1998, 1999) |
US Open | 3R (1994, 1999, 2005) |
Silvia Farina Elia (Italian pronunciation: [ˈsilvja faˈriːna eˈliːa]; born 27 April 1972) is a former professional tennis player from Italy. She won 3 WTA singles titles, reached the quarterfinals of the 2003 Wimbledon Championships and achieved a career-high singles ranking of World No. 11 in May 2002. Farina Elia won her first ITF title at Caltagirone in 1991 and her first WTA tournament at Strasbourg in 2001. She made her début Grand Slam appearance at the 1991 French Open and was coached by husband Francesco Elia, whom she married September 1999.
Farina Elia made steady progression on the ITF circuit during the early 1990s and finished her first year in the top 100 in 1991. She completed her first victory over a top ten player (Gabriela Sabatini, Roland Garros) in 1994 and won her first doubles title the next year. In 1996, she represented Italy at the Atlanta Olympics. 1998 was considered her breakthrough year, reaching the final of four tournaments and in the process securing a place in the year end top 20. She was 26 at the time and thus considered a "late bloomer". She only reached one singles final in 1999 but made a greater impact in doubles, winning three tournaments.
In 2001 Farina Elia won a belated first WTA Tour title, at the Internationaux de Strasbourg. She ended the year No. 14, what was to be her best year end finish and played in the WTA Tour Championships of 2001 and 2002. She consolidated the Strasbourg win with two more wins at the tournament. In 2003, she achieved her best Grand Slam result at the unlikely venue of Wimbledon, home of her least favourite surface, losing to Kim Clijsters, 7–5, 0–6, 1–6 in the quarterfinals.