Mary Joe Fernández Godsick (born María José Fernández; August 19, 1971) is an American former professional tennis player, who reached a career-high ranking of world No. 4 in both singles and doubles. In singles, Fernández was the runner-up at the

1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of humanity on Earth, astrophysicis ...

and

1992 Australian Open The 1992 Australian Open was a tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts at Flinders Park in Melbourne, Australia and was held from 13 through 26 January 1992. It was the 80th edition of the Australian Open and the first Grand Slam tourna ...

, and the 1993 French Open. She also won a bronze medal at the

1992 Summer Olympics The 1992 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1992, ca, Jocs Olímpics d'estiu de 1992), officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XXV Olimpiada, ca, Jocs de la XXV Olimpíada) and commonly known as ...

. In doubles, she won the

1991 Australian Open The 1991 Australian Open was a tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts at Flinders Park in Melbourne in Victoria in Australia. It was the 79th edition of the Australian Open and was held from 14 through 27 January 1991. Seniors Men's s ...

with

Patty Fendick Patty Fendick (born March 31, 1965) is a former professional tennis player and the former women's tennis program head coach at University of Texas. Born in Sacramento, California, she played at the collegiate level at Stanford University, where t ...

and the

1996 French Open The 1996 French Open was a tennis tournament that took place on the outdoor clay courts at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France. The tournament was held from 27 May until 9 June. It was the 100th staging of the French Open, and the second Gra ...

with

Lindsay Davenport Lindsay Ann Davenport Leach (born June 8, 1976) is an American former professional tennis player. Davenport was ranked singles world No. 1 for a total of 98 weeks, and was the year-end singles world No. 1 four times (1998, 2001, 2004, and 2005) ...

, plus two

Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece bet ...

gold medals.

Career

Fernández first came to the tennis world's attention as an outstanding junior player who won four straight

Orange Bowl The Orange Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in the Miami metropolitan area. It has been played annually since January 1, 1935, making it, along with the Sugar Bowl and the Sun Bowl, the second-oldest bowl game in ...

junior titles. In 1985, aged 14 years and eight days, she became the youngest player to win a main draw match at the US Open when she defeated

Sara Gomer Sara Louise Gomer (born 13 May 1964) is a retired tennis player from Great Britain. A left-hander, she competed for Britain at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul and the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona. She won two singles titles on the ITF Ci ...

in the first round. Turning professional in 1986, she won her first tour doubles title in 1989 at

Dallas Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County ...

, partnering

Betsy Nagelsen Helen Elizabeth "Betsy" Nagelsen McCormack (born October 23, 1956) is an American former professional tennis player. Career Nagelsen was the world's top junior in 1973. She won the 1973 U.S. Champion Girls' 16 and under singles. She also won the ...

. She was also semifinalist at the 1989 French Open, losing to Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario 2–6, 2–6. She reached her first Grand Slam singles final in 1990 at the

Australian Open The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Ope ...

, where she was defeated by

Steffi Graf Stefanie Maria Graf ( , ; born 14 June 1969) is a German former professional tennis player. Widely regarded as one of the greatest tennis players of all time, she was ranked world No. 1 for a record 377 weeks and won 22 major singles titles, ...

3–6, 4–6 (having held a 4–1 lead herself in the second set). She won her first

WTA Tour The WTA Tour is a worldwide top-tier tennis tour for women organized by the Women's Tennis Association. The second-tier tour is the WTA 125K series, and third-tier is the ITF Women's Circuit. The men's equivalent is the ATP Tour. WTA Tour tou ...

singles title the same year at the Tokyo Indoor championships, and finished the year ranked a career-high world No. 4 in singles. In 1991, Fernández reached the semifinals of the Australian Open, where she was match point up against Monica Seles, before eventually losing 3–6, 6–0, 7–9. She teamed with

to win the women's Australian Open doubles title. At Wimbledon, she reached the semifinals, losing to Steffi Graf in straight sets. She reached the Australian Open singles final again in 1992, beating world No. 3,

Gabriela Sabatini Gabriela Beatriz Sabatini (; born 16 May 1970) is an Argentine-Italian former professional tennis player. A former world No. 3 in both singles and doubles, Sabatini was one of the leading players from the mid-1980s to the mid-1990s, amassing 41 ...

, in the semifinals before losing to Seles, 2–6, 3–6. She also reached the semifinals of the US Open, beating Sabatini in the quarterfinals and losing once again to Seles. At the 1992 Olympic Games in

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

, Fernández was selected to represent the United States and won both a gold medal in women's doubles (with

Gigi Fernández Beatriz "Gigi" Fernández (born February 22, 1964) is a Puerto Rican former professional tennis player. Fernández won 17 major doubles titles and two Olympic gold medals representing the United States, and reached the world No. 1 ranking in do ...

) and a bronze medal in singles. In 1993, she won the title in Indian Wells, defeating Amanda Coetzer in the final. At the French Open, she defeated world No. 5 Sabatini in the quarterfinals and world No. 3 Sanchez-Vicario in the semifinals. In the final against Steffi Graf, Fernandez held several points to lead 3–0 in the final set, but eventually lost 6–4, 2–6, 4–6. Fernández won her second Grand Slam doubles title in 1996 at the French Open, partnering with

. The pair went on to capture the year-end

WTA Tour Championships WTA may refer to: Organizations * Washington Trails Association * Whatcom Transportation Authority *Waskahegan Trail Association, the management board for the Waskahegan Trail *Water Transit Authority, former name of the San Francisco Bay Area Wa ...

doubles title later that year. She was a late replacement for Chanda Rubin on the United States team for the 1996 Olympic Games in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,7 ...

. She won a second straight women's doubles gold medal, again in partnership with Gigi Fernández. She was also entered in the singles competition (owing to a withdrawal), and reached the semifinals, defeating world No. 2,

Conchita Martinez Conchita is originally a diminutive for the Spanish feminine given name Concepción. Conxita is the Catalan equivalent. ''Conchita'' is also the diminutive of ''concha'' (seashell). Conchita may refer to: People * Conchita Cabrera de Armida (1 ...

, in the quarterfinals. She was defeated for the bronze medal by

Jana Novotná Jana Novotná (; 2 October 1968 – 19 November 2017) was a Czech professional tennis player. She played a serve and volley game, an increasingly rare style of play among women during her career. Novotná won the women's singles title at Wimbl ...

. Later that year, Fernández was a member of the U.S. team that won the

Fed Cup The Billie Jean King Cup (or the BJK Cup) is the premier international team competition in women's tennis, launched as the Federation Cup in 1963 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the International Tennis Federation (ITF). The name was chan ...

. Fernández reached the semifinals of the Australian Open in 1997, losing to Martina Hingis 1–6, 3–6. In May, she won her first and only Tier I tournament in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitu ...

, beating Jana Novotná in the semifinals and

Mary Pierce Mary Caroline Pierce (born 15 January 1975) is a retired tennis professional who represented France internationally in team competitions and the Olympics. She was born in Canada to an American father and a French mother, and holds citizenship of ...

in the final. At the end-of-year

WTA Finals The WTA Finals (formerly known as the WTA Tour Championships or WTA Championships) is a tournament of the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) played annually at the end of the season. The event is uniquely reserved for players at the top of the WTA ...

, she defeated world No. 2, Lindsay Davenport. In 1999, she defeated

Serena Williams Serena Jameka Williams (born September 26, 1981) is an American inactive professional tennis player. Considered among the greatest tennis players of all time, she was ranked world No. 1 in singles by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) fo ...

in the third round of the French Open and in her last Grand Slam appearance she lost to

Venus Williams Venus Ebony Starr Williams (born June 17, 1980) is an American professional tennis player. A former world No. 1 in both singles and doubles, Williams has won seven Grand Slam singles titles, five at Wimbledon and two at the US Open. She is ...

in the fourth round of the US Open the same year. She retired from the tour in 2000, having won a total of 24 titles:- seven WTA singles titles and 17 doubles titles.

Post retirement

Fernández coached the US Fed Cup team from 2008 to 2016 and served as the woman's coach for the 2012 U.S. Olympic tennis team in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. She currently works as an analyst and commentator for

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...

Personal life

Fernández was born in the

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares with ...

; her parents were immigrants to the country. Her father José is from

Asturias Asturias (, ; ast, Asturies ), officially the Principality of Asturias ( es, Principado de Asturias; ast, Principáu d'Asturies; Galician-Asturian: ''Principao d'Asturias''), is an autonomous community in northwest Spain. It is coextensiv ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

, and her mother Silvia Pino is from

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribb ...

. She completed her high school education at the Carrollton School of the Sacred Heart in

Miami, Florida Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at ...

. In April 2000, Fernández married Anthony (Tony) Godsick, a sports agent with

International Management Group IMG, originally known as the International Management Group, is a global sports, events and talent management company headquartered in New York City. It has been owned by Endeavor since 2013. Trans World International (TWI) is an event and pro ...

. Monica Seles was a bridesmaid at the wedding. They have two children. Her husband is the current agent of

Roger Federer Roger Federer (; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks, including a record 237 consecutive weeks, and finished as the year-e ...

. One of their children, Nicholas Godsick, is also a tennis player. She has homes in

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S ...

, and

Key Biscayne, Florida Key Biscayne is an island town in Miami-Dade County, Florida. The population was 12,344 at the 2010 census. Key Biscayne lies south of Miami Beach and east of Miami. The village is connected to Miami via the Rickenbacker Causeway, originall ...

Significant finals

Grand Slam tournaments

Singles: 3 (3 runner-ups)

Doubles: 7 (2 titles, 5 runner-ups)

Olympics

Singles: 1 (bronze medal)

Mary Joe Fernández lost in the semifinals to

, 4–6, 2–6. In 1992, there was no bronze medal play-off match, both beaten semifinal players received bronze medals.

Doubles: 2 (2 gold medals)

Year-end championships

Doubles: 1 title

WTA career finals

Singles: 16 (7–9)

Doubles: 41 (17–24)

Grand Slam performance timelines

Singles

Doubles

References

External links

* * *
Mary-Joe Fernandez ESPN Bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fernandez, Mary Joe 1971 births American female tennis players American people of Asturian descent American people of Cuban descent American people of Spanish descent American sportspeople of Dominican Republic descent American tennis coaches Australian Open (tennis) champions Dominican Republic emigrants to the United States Dominican Republic people of Spanish descent French Open champions Grand Slam (tennis) champions in women's doubles Hopman Cup competitors Living people Medalists at the 1996 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1992 Summer Olympics Olympic bronze medalists for the United States in tennis Olympic gold medalists for the United States in tennis People from Key Biscayne, Florida Schools of the Sacred Heart alumni Sportspeople from Miami Tennis commentators Tennis players from Miami Tennis players at the 1992 Summer Olympics Tennis players at the 1996 Summer Olympics White Dominicans Women sports announcers ITF World Champions