Prince Nelson of the United Kingdom: Difference between revisions
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| residence = | | residence = | ||
| sportswear_(racquet) = | | sportswear_(racquet) = | ||
| birth_date = {{birth date and age| | | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1962|3|23}} | ||
| birth_place = {{wp|London}}, {{wp|England}} | | birth_place = {{wp|London}}, {{wp|England}} | ||
| death_date = <!-- {{death date and age|yyyy|mm|dd|yyyy|mm|dd}} first date is death date, second date is birth date--> | | death_date = <!-- {{death date and age|yyyy|mm|dd|yyyy|mm|dd}} first date is death date, second date is birth date--> | ||
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| singlesrecord = 1052-158 (86.95%) | | singlesrecord = 1052-158 (86.95%) | ||
| singlestitles = 86 ({{wp|Tennis players with most titles in the Open Era#Men|6th in the Open Era}}) | | singlestitles = 86 ({{wp|Tennis players with most titles in the Open Era#Men|6th in the Open Era}}) | ||
| highestsinglesranking = {{wp|List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis players|No. '''1'''}} (9 December 1983) | | highestsinglesranking = {{wp|List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis players|No. '''1'''}} (9 December 1983) | ||
| currentsinglesranking = <!-- NEVER UPDATE UNTIL THE WTA/ATP WEBSITE IS UPDATED (Usually on Mondays) --> | | currentsinglesranking = <!-- NEVER UPDATE UNTIL THE WTA/ATP WEBSITE IS UPDATED (Usually on Mondays) --> | ||
| retirementsinglesranking = | | retirementsinglesranking = | ||
| AustralianOpenresult = '''W''' (1983, '''1984''', 1986, 1989, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001) | | AustralianOpenresult = '''W''' (1980, '''1983''', '''1984''', 1986, 1989, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001) | ||
| FrenchOpenresult = '''W''' (1981, 1983, '''1984''', 1994, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2005) | | FrenchOpenresult = '''W''' (1980, 1981, 1982, '''1983''', '''1984''', 1987, 1994, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005) | ||
| Wimbledonresult = '''W''' (1983, '''1984''', 1989, 1998, 2002) | | Wimbledonresult = '''W''' ('''1983''', '''1984''', 1989, 1998, 2002) | ||
| USOpenresult = '''W''' (1983, '''1984''', 1988, 1990, 1992, 1993, 1997) | | USOpenresult = '''W''' (1980, 1982, '''1983''', '''1984''', 1987, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1993, 1997, 2003) | ||
| AustralianOpenjuniorresult = <!-- do not add any jr. info once any pro result is recorded in the infobox --> | | AustralianOpenjuniorresult = <!-- do not add any jr. info once any pro result is recorded in the infobox --> | ||
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}} | }} | ||
'''Prince Nelson''' (Nelson Frederick Francis Albert Charles; born 23 March | '''Prince Nelson''' (Nelson Frederick Francis Albert Charles; born 23 March 1962), known professionally as '''Nelson Bacall''', is a {{wp|British}} former professional tennis player and a member of the {{wp|British royal family}}. The youngest of two sons of [[Charles the Great|Emperor Charles III]] and the {{wp|American}} actress {{wp|Lauren Bacall}}, Nelson is known for his two-decades-long career in professional tennis which saw him win a total of 86 singles titles including a joint record of 7 {{wp|ATP Finals}} titles and a record 38 {{wp|Grand Slam (tennis)|Grand Slam}} men's singles titles. Having first turned professional in 1980, Nelson's debut saw him win all but one of the four {{wp|Grand Slam (tennis)|Grand Slam}} majors in his debut year, a feat that he subsequently followed up on with a complete {{wp|Grand Slam (tennis)|Grand Slam}} in 1983 and a second consecutive one in 1984, a year that also saw him become the first of only two players, male or female, to complete the {{wp|Golden Slam}} with the rest of his two-decades-long career seeing him win the {{wp|Australian Open}} and the {{wp|French Open}} seven further times each, the {{wp|Wimbledon Championships}} thrice further, and the {{wp|US Open (tennis)|US Open}} a further eight times. Moreover, in 1983, Nelson famously defeated the {{wp|American}} tennis player {{wp|John McEnroe}} to become the only {{wp|British}} player to win the {{wp|WCT Finals}} prior to its dissolution. Meanwhile, on the international stage, Nelson helped deliver gold for {{wp|Great Britain}} in tennis for the first time in decades at the {{wp|Olympic Games}} since 1920 and in 2005 also helped deliver {{wp|Great Britain}}'s first {{wp|Davis Cup}} title in almost seven decades via a memorable 3-2 win over {{wp|Croatia}}, a feat that was only repeated a decade later by {{wp|Andy Murray}}. As of current, with a total of eleven titles, Nelson holds the record for the most single titles won at the {{wp|US Open (tennis)|US Open}} while his record of ten singles titles at the {{wp|Australian Open}} is shared with {{wp|Novak Djokovic}}. Among others, he also is tied with {{wp|Novak Djokovic|Djokovic}} for the most {{wp|ATP Finals}} won with seven with his final win in {{wp|2004 Tennis Masters Cup|2004}} making him the oldest player to have won it at the age of forty-two. | ||
In addition to his hugely successful singles career, Nelson also enjoyed much success competing in the doubles, doing so primarily with | In addition to his hugely successful singles career, Nelson also enjoyed much success competing in the doubles, doing so primarily with {{wp|Steffi Graf}}. Together, the duo won the {{wp|Australian Open}} and the {{wp|French Open}} four times each as well as the {{wp|Wimbledon Championships}} and {{wp|US Open (tennis)|US Open}} thrice each during which they completed a {{wp|Grand Slam (tennis)|Grand Slam}} in 1999, making them only the second mixed doubles pair to do so after {{wp|Margaret Court}} and {{wp|Ken Fletcher}} in 1963. Considered widely to be the most successful and prolific mixed doubles duo of the {{wp|Open Era}}, the two are popularly nicknamed "The Golden Duo" while {{wp|ESPN}} dubbed them "The King and Queen of Tennis". Since his retirement in 2005, Nelson has served as the chairman of {{wp|Great Britain}}'s {{wp|Lawn Tennis Association}} as well as the president of {{wp|The Football Association}}, a post that he held until 2020. | ||
Considered to be among the greatest professional tennis players in history and, among {{wp|Britons}}, some of the nation's greatest alongside {{wp|Fred Perry}} and {{wp|Andy Murray}}, | Considered to be among the greatest professional tennis players in history and, among {{wp|Britons}}, some of the nation's greatest alongside {{wp|Fred Perry}} and {{wp|Andy Murray}}, owing to his fast and powerful {{wp|Volley (tennis)|volleys}} and his trademark blonde hair, Nelson is popularly nicknamed "The Thunderbolt" by supporters and is considered to be the most successful student of {{wp|Pancho Segura}}, his longtime coach and mentor. On 20 September 1999, Nelson married the former {{wp|German}} tennis player {{wp|Steffi Graf}}, with whom he has two children. In 2006, Nelson was inducted into the {{wp|International Tennis Hall of Fame}}, joining the likes of fellow {{wp|Britons}} {{wp|Fred Perry}}, {{wp|Wilfred Baddeley}}, {{wp|Laurence Doherty}}, and his {{wp|German}} wife {{wp|Steffi Graf}}. | ||
==Early Life== | ==Early Life== | ||
Born on 23 March 1962, Nelson was the youngest son and second child of [[Charles the Great|Emperor Charles III]] and the {{wp|American}} actress {{wp|Lauren Bacall}}. Christened Nelson Frederick Francis Albert Charles, much like his two siblings, namely older brother [[Thomas, King of the British|Thomas]] and younger sister [[Catherine, Princess Royal|Catherine]], Nelson was raised directly by his {{wp|Lauren Bacall|mother}} within the confines of {{wp|Buckingham Palace}}. | |||
== | Much like his [[Thomas, King of the British|older brother]], from an early age, Nelson grew up being immediately and deeply in love with sports with his {{wp|English}} ancestry and upbringing naturally translating into a love for football with the {{wp|1966 FIFA World Cup Final}} in {{wp|London}}, {{wp|England}} being a particularly fond memory for a young Nelson who was only four years old at the time. However, after having gone through several different types of sports in his youth, Nelson ultimately came to love {{wp|tennis}} the most. Later on, Nelson attributed his decision to pursue {{wp|tennis}} over {{wp|football}}, a sport that he equally loved as a longtime supporter of {{wp|Manchester United}}, primarily due to a passionate desire to restore the prestige of {{wp|British}} tennis given that at the time of his birth, it had been almost three decades since a {{wp|Grand Slam (tennis)|Grand Slam}} title was won by a {{wp|Brit}}, namely the late {{wp|Fred Perry}} in 1936. In addition, Nelson also cited {{wp|football}}'s extreme physicality at the time, coupled with him naturally standing out from his non-royal teammates, as to why he never pursued a career in professional football, stating, ''"Compared to the {{wp|Premier League}} era today, football back when I was growing up, even if it had the same rules and fundamentals, was an entirely different game nonetheless where the players were a lot more brutal and physical than those playing today while the rules themselves were arguably laxer and less defined as they are today, meaning that players who are accustomed to what football is today would not survive at all if they go a few decades back"''. | ||
==Career== | |||
===1980s=== | |||
===1990s=== | |||
===2000s=== | |||
==Playing Style== | |||
A student of the famed {{wp|Pancho Segura}} throughout much of his career, Nelson came to acquire a reputation for an aggressive and somewhat pacey style of play and is thus considered to be one of the greatest practitioners of the {{wp|serve-and-volley}}. In line with this, Nelson has also received considerable praise for his adept footwork which allows him to place himself in suitable positions rather often to accurately and quickly respond to serves from his opponents, which he usually did so while being close to the net rather than the baseline with the main aim of overwhelming his opponent with a combination of sheer speed and precision. Later, in one of the several interviews discussing his playing style, Nelson said, ''"While I would confidently say that I'm a somewhat athletic person who could usually handle long games of tennis, at the same time, I don't really like having excessively long, drawn-out rallies, especially when I'm playing in a Grand Slam tournament unless I'm really forced to do so because aside from being generally good and skilled in the sport, one must always be ready to face their opponent at any given time and ideally in a top condition. Because of that, if I have a very strong opponent coming up later, I usually want to have my current opponent dealt with quickly so that any energy I might have lost while fighting my opponent could be restored much quicker and in time for my next match"''. Meanwhile, despite having never really preferred either his forehand or backhand during rallies, Nelson is more known to many for his powerful forehand that, paired with his penchant for {{wp|topspin|''topspin''}} shots, made him a lethal and, at times, a difficult opponent to keep up with, especially during the later stages. Consequently, his style of play, coupled with his natural blond hair, eventually earned him the nickname "The Thunderbolt", his most popular moniker, along with several other variations including "Thundering Nelson" and "The Prince of Thunder". | |||
Being one of only two tennis players in {{wp|Open Era}} history alongside {{wp|Steffi Graf}} to have won each of the four {{wp|Grand Slam (tennis)|Grand Slam}} tournaments more than four times, with each tournament employing a different type of surface, Nelson is generally considered to be a versatile player who is able to adapt to the different types of tennis courts, particularly the {{wp|clay court}} used in the {{wp|French Open}} where despite the clay surface being somewhat of a traditional deterrent against his fast and pacey playing style, with a total of eight titles won, Nelson, who rarely abandons his trademark {{wp|serve-and-volley}} playing style throughout his two-decades-long career, has thus proven to be a remarkable all-rounder whose effectiveness and best qualities are seemingly unaffected by a change in surfaces. Later on, during an interview with {{wp|BBC Sport}}, Nelson remarked, ''"As a professional tennis player, winning titles is obviously my aim every single time I play but what I personally and ultimately aim for is to prove that I could win a roughly similar number of titles across all four {{wp|Grand Slam (tennis)|Grand Slam}} tournaments because if I proved successful in doing that, it shows that no matter what court or under what weather I'm playing in, nothing or no one could stop me from being at my best and playing the way that I liked the most. In the end, I don't like knowing that a certain type of surface disadvantages me in any way because the surface is supposed to be my ally against my opponent rather than against me instead"''. | |||
==Personal Life== | ==Personal Life== | ||
As the secondborn son of [[Charles the Great| | As the secondborn son of [[Charles the Great|Emperor Charles III]], for much of his life, Nelson was second in line to the throne of the {{wp|United Kingdom}}. However, the birth of his niece, the future [[Alexandra, Queen of the British|Empress Alexandra]] saw him relegated to third place during the final years of his [[Charles the Great|father]]'s reign. Then, during the first few years of his [[Thomas, King of the British|brother]]'s reign, Nelson was once again second in line to the throne until the birth of his nephew [[Prince Richard of Hanover|Prince Richard]], followed by several other children of his [[Thomas, King of the British|brother]], resulted in him placing fifth in the line of succession where he currently sits. | ||
In a somewhat unusual manner for a member of the royal family, Nelson is known to have publicly sported a pair of tattoos, both of which are inked on his arms. In this, his right arm features a tattoo depicting a lightning bolt crossed with an arrow, a reference to his nickname and playing style. Otherwise, his left arm features a tattoo depicting a combination of the letter "V" and the {{wp|Roman}} numeral for three ("III"), a reference to the famous phrase of {{wp|Veni, vidi, vici|"Veni, vidi, vici"}} ("I came, I saw, I conquered") by the {{wp|Roman}} leader {{wp|Julius Caesar}}. | In a somewhat unusual manner for a member of the royal family, Nelson is known to have publicly sported a pair of tattoos, both of which are inked on his arms. In this, his right arm features a tattoo depicting a lightning bolt crossed with an arrow, a reference to his nickname and playing style. Otherwise, his left arm features a tattoo depicting a combination of the letter "V" and the {{wp|Roman}} numeral for three ("III"), a reference to the famous phrase of {{wp|Veni, vidi, vici|"Veni, vidi, vici"}} ("I came, I saw, I conquered") by the {{wp|Roman}} leader {{wp|Julius Caesar}}. | ||
A lover of high-end automobiles in the tradition of his family, Nelson, much like his siblings, personally owns several vehicles himself in which he is known to be a devoted fan of the {{wp|German}} luxury vehicle brand {{wp|Mercedes-Benz}}. As of current, he normally drives a white {{wp|Mercedes-AMG GT}} while also owning a {{wp|Mercedes-Benz G-Class}} and a {{wp|Mercedes-Benz S-Class (W223)|Mercedes-Benz S-Class}}. In addition, much like his [[Thomas, King of the British|brother]], Nelson also owns a {{wp|Harley-Davidson}} motorcycle, which he occasionally drives for leisurely purposes. | A lover of high-end automobiles in the tradition of his family, Nelson, much like his siblings, personally owns several vehicles himself in which he is known to be a devoted fan of the {{wp|German}} luxury vehicle brand {{wp|Mercedes-Benz}}. As of current, he normally drives a white {{wp|Mercedes-AMG GT}} while also owning a {{wp|Mercedes-Benz G-Class}} and a {{wp|Mercedes-Benz S-Class (W223)|Mercedes-Benz S-Class}}. In addition, much like his [[Thomas, King of the British|brother]], Nelson also owns a {{wp|Harley-Davidson}} motorcycle, which he occasionally drives for leisurely purposes. | ||
A longtime supporter with his [[Thomas, King of the British|brother]] of the {{wp|English}} football club {{wp|Manchester United}}, Nelson was briefly rumoured to be a potential candidate for taking over {{wp|Manchester United}} from the {{wp|American}} {{wp|Glazer family}}, the club's current owners. However, Nelson himself later refuted such rumours but said that he remains "deeply committed" to seeing a revival in fortunes for the club whose period following the departure of its longtime manager {{wp|Sir}} {{wp|Alex Ferguson}} has been less than promising. | |||
===Marriage=== | ===Marriage=== | ||
Since 1999, Nelson has been married to the {{wp|German}} tennis player {{wp|Steffi Graf}}. To that end, the couple first | Since 1999, Nelson has been married to the former {{wp|German}} tennis player {{wp|Steffi Graf}}. To that end, the couple first crossed paths at a 1990 exhibition game popularly dubbed "The Golden Slam Showdown", a best-of-three sets contest that pitted a 28-year-old Nelson and a 21-year-old {{wp|Steffi Graf|Graf}}, both of whom currently hold the distinction of being the only two tennis players, male or female, to achieve a {{wp|Golden Slam}}. Held at the {{wp|Centre Court}} in {{wp|Wimbledon, London|Wimbledon}}, {{wp|London}}, the competition initially saw {{wp|Steffi Graf|Graf}} comfortably beat Nelson over four games straight to ultimately win the first set 6-1 in which Nelson himself only managed a single win, namely a 5-3 triumph in the fifth game. Then, in the otherwise more dramatic and tightly contested second set, the two traded wins right after the other over the course of twelve straight games to ultimately make it 6-6, during which Nelson notably fought to achieve a grueling 13-11 victory over {{wp|Steffi Graf|Graf}} in the tenth game, thereby resulting in an equally dramatic tiebreaker that was ultimately won by {{wp|Steffi Graf|Graf}} 8-6, thus effectively ending the tournament with two straight sets won for the {{wp|German}} star. In this, despite some ridicule afterward over his heavy defeat in the first set to {{wp|Steffi Graf|Graf}}, a newfound sense of respect and, in turn, affection for his opponent soon saw Nelson discreetly begin making a move on {{wp|Steffi Graf|Graf}}, thus beginning their eventual romance not long after their first on-pitch encounter. However, given that both of them were established stars in {{wp|tennis}}, the two mutually agreed to keep their relationship a secret out of a need to ensure that neither of their careers would be derailed by excessive media coverage and interest regarding their romance. | ||
Despite the secrecy, throughout the following years, the two went on to compete together for the doubles matches to much success with the pairing itself simultaneously sparking rumours of a romance between them given their rather friendly behaviour with each other and the fact that both of them are the only ones to have ever achieved the historic {{wp|Golden Slam}}. In this, despite neither of them publicly acknowledging their relationship, their joint appearance at the wedding of Nelson's [[Thomas, King of the British|brother]] to the {{wp|American}} supermodel {{wp|Christy Turlington}} in December 1995, coupled with them always pairing up with each other for mixed doubles matches, only gave further credence to a supposed romance between the two with the ''{{wp|New York Post}}'' particularly coining the portmanteau "Neffi", a combination of their first names, while {{wp|ESPN}} dubbed them "the first and greatest power couple in sports history", adding that no known romance between two highly successful athletes in any given sport has ever emerged before. Eventually, on 12 September 1999, shortly after the couple achieved a historic {{wp|Grand Slam (tennis)|Grand Slam}} in the mixed doubles category, becoming only the second pair to do so after {{wp|Margaret Court}} and {{wp|Ken Fletcher}}, Nelson publicly proposed to {{wp|Steffi Graf|Graf}} on the tennis court, a gesture that seemingly confirmed their relationship for the first time despite it reportedly being an open secret by that point. Then, on 20 September 1999, just eight days after the proposal, the couple was later wedded at {{wp|Oheka Castle}} in {{wp|New York (state)|New York}}, {{wp|United States}} in an intimate ceremony attended by their closest friends and relatives including {{wp|Steffi Graf|Graf}}'s famous rivals {{wp|Monica Seles}} and {{wp|Martina Navratilova}} as well as Nelson's own brother [[Thomas, King of the British|Emperor Thomas]] and his wife, the {{wp|American}} supermodel {{wp|Christy Turlington}}. Following this, the couple later went on to welcome four children, namely daughters sons Carl and Michael and daughters Elisabeth and Heidi. By the couple's own request, neither of their four children was afforded royal titles although both still retain their respective positions in the line of succession while also taking their mother's "Graf" surname. | |||
Later on, during a 2010 interview marking the twentieth anniversary of the "Golden Slam Showdown", in one of the few instances where he publicly spoke about his marriage to {{wp|Steffi Graf}}, Nelson, while confirming that the two did indeed begin a relationship not long after their fateful first encounter, said that he already harboured feelings for {{wp|Steffi Graf|Graf}} before the two even met for the first time, adding that following his historic 1984 {{wp|Golden Slam}} triumph, he initially thought that no other player, male or female, could ever replicate his success given the sheer difficulty until the {{wp|German}} tennis legend herself did it just four years later and, being only nineteen at the time, was a few years younger than Nelson who was twenty-three at the time of his historic achievement. Consequently, Nelson himself soon conceived the idea of a "Golden Slam Showdown" between him and {{wp|Steffi Graf|Graf}} so as to test the {{wp|German}} tennis player himself while simultaneously working gradually towards an eventual romantic relationship, stating, ''"When she did what I thought no one else could do, I instantly knew that out of the many great tennis players I have met throughout my long career, she is a one-of-a-kind player that exactly no one else could compare to with all their achievements and whom I rightly saw as not just my equal in the sport but also my one-half for life"''. However, despite the couple's superstar status, the two are known to have generally avoided the media and only give interviews on a rare and occasional basis. Otherwise, the couple have since been actively devoted to various charitable organisations related to issues including poverty, war, and climate change. | |||
==Titles & Honours== | ==Titles & Honours== | ||
Latest revision as of 12:10, 8 June 2024
 | |
| Full name | Nelson Frederick Francis Albert Charles |
|---|---|
| Country (sports) |  Great Britain |
| Born | March 23, 1962 London, England |
| Height | 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in) |
| Turned pro | 1980 |
| Retired | 2005 |
| Plays | Right-handed (two-handed backhand) |
| Coach | Pancho Segura |
| Prize money | $82,263,939 * 4th all-time leader in earnings |
| Int. Tennis HoF | 2006 |
| Singles | |
| Career record | 1052-158 (86.95%) |
| Career titles | 86 (6th in the Open Era) |
| Highest ranking | No. 1 (9 December 1983) |
| Grand Slam singles results | |
| Australian Open | W (1980, 1983, 1984, 1986, 1989, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001) |
| French Open | W (1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1987, 1994, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005) |
| Wimbledon | W (1983, 1984, 1989, 1998, 2002) |
| US Open | W (1980, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1987, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1993, 1997, 2003) |
| Tour Finals | W (1985, 1990, 1993, 1994, 1999, 2002, 2004) |
| WCT Finals | W (1983) |
| Olympic Games | W (1984, 1992, 2000, 2004) |
| Career record | {{#property:P555}} |
| Mixed doubles | |
| Career record | 36-8 (82.3%) |
| Career titles | 14 |
| Grand Slam mixed doubles results | |
| Australian Open | W (1993, 1997, 1998, 1999) |
| French Open | W (1992, 1994, 1998, 1999) |
| Wimbledon | W (1991, 1995, 1999) |
| US Open | W (1992, 1994, 1999) |
| Team competitions | |
| Davis Cup | W (2005) |
Medal record | |
Prince Nelson (Nelson Frederick Francis Albert Charles; born 23 March 1962), known professionally as Nelson Bacall, is a British former professional tennis player and a member of the British royal family. The youngest of two sons of Emperor Charles III and the American actress Lauren Bacall, Nelson is known for his two-decades-long career in professional tennis which saw him win a total of 86 singles titles including a joint record of 7 ATP Finals titles and a record 38 Grand Slam men's singles titles. Having first turned professional in 1980, Nelson's debut saw him win all but one of the four Grand Slam majors in his debut year, a feat that he subsequently followed up on with a complete Grand Slam in 1983 and a second consecutive one in 1984, a year that also saw him become the first of only two players, male or female, to complete the Golden Slam with the rest of his two-decades-long career seeing him win the Australian Open and the French Open seven further times each, the Wimbledon Championships thrice further, and the US Open a further eight times. Moreover, in 1983, Nelson famously defeated the American tennis player John McEnroe to become the only British player to win the WCT Finals prior to its dissolution. Meanwhile, on the international stage, Nelson helped deliver gold for Great Britain in tennis for the first time in decades at the Olympic Games since 1920 and in 2005 also helped deliver Great Britain's first Davis Cup title in almost seven decades via a memorable 3-2 win over Croatia, a feat that was only repeated a decade later by Andy Murray. As of current, with a total of eleven titles, Nelson holds the record for the most single titles won at the US Open while his record of ten singles titles at the Australian Open is shared with Novak Djokovic. Among others, he also is tied with Djokovic for the most ATP Finals won with seven with his final win in 2004 making him the oldest player to have won it at the age of forty-two.
In addition to his hugely successful singles career, Nelson also enjoyed much success competing in the doubles, doing so primarily with Steffi Graf. Together, the duo won the Australian Open and the French Open four times each as well as the Wimbledon Championships and US Open thrice each during which they completed a Grand Slam in 1999, making them only the second mixed doubles pair to do so after Margaret Court and Ken Fletcher in 1963. Considered widely to be the most successful and prolific mixed doubles duo of the Open Era, the two are popularly nicknamed "The Golden Duo" while ESPN dubbed them "The King and Queen of Tennis". Since his retirement in 2005, Nelson has served as the chairman of Great Britain's Lawn Tennis Association as well as the president of The Football Association, a post that he held until 2020.
Considered to be among the greatest professional tennis players in history and, among Britons, some of the nation's greatest alongside Fred Perry and Andy Murray, owing to his fast and powerful volleys and his trademark blonde hair, Nelson is popularly nicknamed "The Thunderbolt" by supporters and is considered to be the most successful student of Pancho Segura, his longtime coach and mentor. On 20 September 1999, Nelson married the former German tennis player Steffi Graf, with whom he has two children. In 2006, Nelson was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame, joining the likes of fellow Britons Fred Perry, Wilfred Baddeley, Laurence Doherty, and his German wife Steffi Graf.
Early Life
Born on 23 March 1962, Nelson was the youngest son and second child of Emperor Charles III and the American actress Lauren Bacall. Christened Nelson Frederick Francis Albert Charles, much like his two siblings, namely older brother Thomas and younger sister Catherine, Nelson was raised directly by his mother within the confines of Buckingham Palace.
Much like his older brother, from an early age, Nelson grew up being immediately and deeply in love with sports with his English ancestry and upbringing naturally translating into a love for football with the 1966 FIFA World Cup Final in London, England being a particularly fond memory for a young Nelson who was only four years old at the time. However, after having gone through several different types of sports in his youth, Nelson ultimately came to love tennis the most. Later on, Nelson attributed his decision to pursue tennis over football, a sport that he equally loved as a longtime supporter of Manchester United, primarily due to a passionate desire to restore the prestige of British tennis given that at the time of his birth, it had been almost three decades since a Grand Slam title was won by a Brit, namely the late Fred Perry in 1936. In addition, Nelson also cited football's extreme physicality at the time, coupled with him naturally standing out from his non-royal teammates, as to why he never pursued a career in professional football, stating, "Compared to the Premier League era today, football back when I was growing up, even if it had the same rules and fundamentals, was an entirely different game nonetheless where the players were a lot more brutal and physical than those playing today while the rules themselves were arguably laxer and less defined as they are today, meaning that players who are accustomed to what football is today would not survive at all if they go a few decades back".
Career
1980s
1990s
2000s
Playing Style
A student of the famed Pancho Segura throughout much of his career, Nelson came to acquire a reputation for an aggressive and somewhat pacey style of play and is thus considered to be one of the greatest practitioners of the serve-and-volley. In line with this, Nelson has also received considerable praise for his adept footwork which allows him to place himself in suitable positions rather often to accurately and quickly respond to serves from his opponents, which he usually did so while being close to the net rather than the baseline with the main aim of overwhelming his opponent with a combination of sheer speed and precision. Later, in one of the several interviews discussing his playing style, Nelson said, "While I would confidently say that I'm a somewhat athletic person who could usually handle long games of tennis, at the same time, I don't really like having excessively long, drawn-out rallies, especially when I'm playing in a Grand Slam tournament unless I'm really forced to do so because aside from being generally good and skilled in the sport, one must always be ready to face their opponent at any given time and ideally in a top condition. Because of that, if I have a very strong opponent coming up later, I usually want to have my current opponent dealt with quickly so that any energy I might have lost while fighting my opponent could be restored much quicker and in time for my next match". Meanwhile, despite having never really preferred either his forehand or backhand during rallies, Nelson is more known to many for his powerful forehand that, paired with his penchant for topspin shots, made him a lethal and, at times, a difficult opponent to keep up with, especially during the later stages. Consequently, his style of play, coupled with his natural blond hair, eventually earned him the nickname "The Thunderbolt", his most popular moniker, along with several other variations including "Thundering Nelson" and "The Prince of Thunder".
Being one of only two tennis players in Open Era history alongside Steffi Graf to have won each of the four Grand Slam tournaments more than four times, with each tournament employing a different type of surface, Nelson is generally considered to be a versatile player who is able to adapt to the different types of tennis courts, particularly the clay court used in the French Open where despite the clay surface being somewhat of a traditional deterrent against his fast and pacey playing style, with a total of eight titles won, Nelson, who rarely abandons his trademark serve-and-volley playing style throughout his two-decades-long career, has thus proven to be a remarkable all-rounder whose effectiveness and best qualities are seemingly unaffected by a change in surfaces. Later on, during an interview with BBC Sport, Nelson remarked, "As a professional tennis player, winning titles is obviously my aim every single time I play but what I personally and ultimately aim for is to prove that I could win a roughly similar number of titles across all four Grand Slam tournaments because if I proved successful in doing that, it shows that no matter what court or under what weather I'm playing in, nothing or no one could stop me from being at my best and playing the way that I liked the most. In the end, I don't like knowing that a certain type of surface disadvantages me in any way because the surface is supposed to be my ally against my opponent rather than against me instead".
Personal Life
As the secondborn son of Emperor Charles III, for much of his life, Nelson was second in line to the throne of the United Kingdom. However, the birth of his niece, the future Empress Alexandra saw him relegated to third place during the final years of his father's reign. Then, during the first few years of his brother's reign, Nelson was once again second in line to the throne until the birth of his nephew Prince Richard, followed by several other children of his brother, resulted in him placing fifth in the line of succession where he currently sits.
In a somewhat unusual manner for a member of the royal family, Nelson is known to have publicly sported a pair of tattoos, both of which are inked on his arms. In this, his right arm features a tattoo depicting a lightning bolt crossed with an arrow, a reference to his nickname and playing style. Otherwise, his left arm features a tattoo depicting a combination of the letter "V" and the Roman numeral for three ("III"), a reference to the famous phrase of "Veni, vidi, vici" ("I came, I saw, I conquered") by the Roman leader Julius Caesar.
A lover of high-end automobiles in the tradition of his family, Nelson, much like his siblings, personally owns several vehicles himself in which he is known to be a devoted fan of the German luxury vehicle brand Mercedes-Benz. As of current, he normally drives a white Mercedes-AMG GT while also owning a Mercedes-Benz G-Class and a Mercedes-Benz S-Class. In addition, much like his brother, Nelson also owns a Harley-Davidson motorcycle, which he occasionally drives for leisurely purposes.
A longtime supporter with his brother of the English football club Manchester United, Nelson was briefly rumoured to be a potential candidate for taking over Manchester United from the American Glazer family, the club's current owners. However, Nelson himself later refuted such rumours but said that he remains "deeply committed" to seeing a revival in fortunes for the club whose period following the departure of its longtime manager Sir Alex Ferguson has been less than promising.
Marriage
Since 1999, Nelson has been married to the former German tennis player Steffi Graf. To that end, the couple first crossed paths at a 1990 exhibition game popularly dubbed "The Golden Slam Showdown", a best-of-three sets contest that pitted a 28-year-old Nelson and a 21-year-old Graf, both of whom currently hold the distinction of being the only two tennis players, male or female, to achieve a Golden Slam. Held at the Centre Court in Wimbledon, London, the competition initially saw Graf comfortably beat Nelson over four games straight to ultimately win the first set 6-1 in which Nelson himself only managed a single win, namely a 5-3 triumph in the fifth game. Then, in the otherwise more dramatic and tightly contested second set, the two traded wins right after the other over the course of twelve straight games to ultimately make it 6-6, during which Nelson notably fought to achieve a grueling 13-11 victory over Graf in the tenth game, thereby resulting in an equally dramatic tiebreaker that was ultimately won by Graf 8-6, thus effectively ending the tournament with two straight sets won for the German star. In this, despite some ridicule afterward over his heavy defeat in the first set to Graf, a newfound sense of respect and, in turn, affection for his opponent soon saw Nelson discreetly begin making a move on Graf, thus beginning their eventual romance not long after their first on-pitch encounter. However, given that both of them were established stars in tennis, the two mutually agreed to keep their relationship a secret out of a need to ensure that neither of their careers would be derailed by excessive media coverage and interest regarding their romance.
Despite the secrecy, throughout the following years, the two went on to compete together for the doubles matches to much success with the pairing itself simultaneously sparking rumours of a romance between them given their rather friendly behaviour with each other and the fact that both of them are the only ones to have ever achieved the historic Golden Slam. In this, despite neither of them publicly acknowledging their relationship, their joint appearance at the wedding of Nelson's brother to the American supermodel Christy Turlington in December 1995, coupled with them always pairing up with each other for mixed doubles matches, only gave further credence to a supposed romance between the two with the New York Post particularly coining the portmanteau "Neffi", a combination of their first names, while ESPN dubbed them "the first and greatest power couple in sports history", adding that no known romance between two highly successful athletes in any given sport has ever emerged before. Eventually, on 12 September 1999, shortly after the couple achieved a historic Grand Slam in the mixed doubles category, becoming only the second pair to do so after Margaret Court and Ken Fletcher, Nelson publicly proposed to Graf on the tennis court, a gesture that seemingly confirmed their relationship for the first time despite it reportedly being an open secret by that point. Then, on 20 September 1999, just eight days after the proposal, the couple was later wedded at Oheka Castle in New York, United States in an intimate ceremony attended by their closest friends and relatives including Graf's famous rivals Monica Seles and Martina Navratilova as well as Nelson's own brother Emperor Thomas and his wife, the American supermodel Christy Turlington. Following this, the couple later went on to welcome four children, namely daughters sons Carl and Michael and daughters Elisabeth and Heidi. By the couple's own request, neither of their four children was afforded royal titles although both still retain their respective positions in the line of succession while also taking their mother's "Graf" surname.
Later on, during a 2010 interview marking the twentieth anniversary of the "Golden Slam Showdown", in one of the few instances where he publicly spoke about his marriage to Steffi Graf, Nelson, while confirming that the two did indeed begin a relationship not long after their fateful first encounter, said that he already harboured feelings for Graf before the two even met for the first time, adding that following his historic 1984 Golden Slam triumph, he initially thought that no other player, male or female, could ever replicate his success given the sheer difficulty until the German tennis legend herself did it just four years later and, being only nineteen at the time, was a few years younger than Nelson who was twenty-three at the time of his historic achievement. Consequently, Nelson himself soon conceived the idea of a "Golden Slam Showdown" between him and Graf so as to test the German tennis player himself while simultaneously working gradually towards an eventual romantic relationship, stating, "When she did what I thought no one else could do, I instantly knew that out of the many great tennis players I have met throughout my long career, she is a one-of-a-kind player that exactly no one else could compare to with all their achievements and whom I rightly saw as not just my equal in the sport but also my one-half for life". However, despite the couple's superstar status, the two are known to have generally avoided the media and only give interviews on a rare and occasional basis. Otherwise, the couple have since been actively devoted to various charitable organisations related to issues including poverty, war, and climate change.
Titles & Honours
- 23 March 1961 - Present His Royal Highness The Prince Nelson
Honours
Ancestry
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