Swedish tennis great Bjorn Borg is auctioning off his five Wimbledon trophies and two of his title-winning wood rackets in order to achieve "financial security."
Borg, the only player to win five consecutive Wimbledon championships, will put the memorabilia on the bloc at Bonhams auction house in London on June 21.
The five silver gilt trophies, which will be sold together, may fetch between ?200,000-?300,000 (US$350,000-US$525,000), Bonhams said on Friday.
"Obviously it is not easy to part with the trophies that symbolize all the tremendous effort, both physically and emotionally that it took to win Wimbledon on five occasions," Borg said.
"However, I do need to have some long-term financial security for those close to me and now believe the time is right for the trophies and rackets to pass to either a tennis collector or a suitable institution where they can be appreciated by a wider number of people."
Borg won his five titles between 1976 and 1980. He is also auctioning off the now-obsolete Donnay rackets he used to beat Ilie Nastase in the 1976 final and John McEnroe in the 1980 final. The five-set win over McEnroe featured a classic 18-16 fourth-set tiebreaker.
The rackets are likely to sell for ?10,000-?15,000 (US$17,500-US$26,2000) each, Bonhams said.
"Even though the symbols of my victories are being sold, what I will always retain is the knowledge that for such a long period I was the supreme world tennis champion," Borg said.
Borg also won six French Open titles before retiring.
SS Lazio on Monday fired the far-right sympathizer who handles their eagle mascot after he posted online a series of videos and pictures of his erect penis. Falconer Juan Bernabe, who has been present at Lazio home matches with Olimpia the eagle since the 2010-2011 season, posted the footage on social media after having surgery on Saturday to implant a penile prosthesis to improve his sexual performance. Lazio said that they had “terminated, with immediate effect” their relationship with Bernabe “due to the seriousness of his conduct,” adding that they were “shocked” by the images. The Serie A club added that Bernabe’s dismissal
‘TOUGH TO BREATHE’: Tunisian three-time Grand Slam finalist Ons Jabeur suffered an asthma attack in her 7-5, 6-3 victory over Colombia’s Camila Osorio Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei yesterday cruised into the second round of the women’s doubles at the Australian Open, while Iga Swiatek romped into a third-round women’s singles showdown with Emma Raducanu and Taylor Fritz was just as emphatic in his pursuit of a maiden Grand Slam title. Hsieh and Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia, the third seeds, defeated Slovakia’s Tereza Mihalikova and Olivia Nicholls of Britain 7-5, 6-2 in 90 minutes in Melbourne. Ostapenko and Hsieh — who won the women’s doubles and mixed doubles at the Australian Open last year — hit 25 winners and converted five of nine break points to set
Hong Kong-based cricket team Hung See this weekend found success in their matches in Taiwan, even if none of the results went their way. Hung See played the Chairman’s XI on Saturday morning, the Daredevils that afternoon and PCCT yesterday, with all three home teams winning. The team for Chinese players at the Happy Valley-based Craigengower Cricket Club sends teams on tour to “spread the game of cricket.” This weekend was Hung See’s second trip to Taiwan after visiting Tainan in 2016. “The club has been traveling to all parts of the world since 1982 and the annual tradition continues [with the Taiwan
Dubbed a “motorway for cyclists” where avid amateurs can chase Tadej Pogacar up mountains teeming with the highest concentration of professional cyclists per square kilometer in the world, Spain’s Costa Blanca has forged a new reputation for itself in the past few years. Long known as the ideal summer destination for those in search of sun, sea and sand, the stretch of coast between Valencia and Alicante now has a winter vocation too. During the season break in December and January, the region experiences an invasion of cyclists. Star names such as three-time Tour de France winner Pogacar, Remco Evenepoel and Julian Alaphilippe
RSS