Ion Țiriac

Ion Țiriac
Country (sports)  Romania
Residence Bucharest, Romania
Born (1939-05-09) 9 May 1939
Brașov, Romania
Height 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Turned pro 1968 (amateur tour from 1962)
Retired 1979
Plays Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Int. Tennis HoF 2013 (member page)
Singles
Career record 167–177[1]
Career titles 1
Highest ranking No. 8 (1968, World's Top 10)[2]
Grand Slam Singles results
Australian Open 2R (1977Jan)
French Open QF (1968)
Wimbledon 4R (1967, 1972)
US Open 3R (1973)
Doubles
Career record 294–141
Career titles 22
Highest ranking No. 19 (9 April 1979)
Grand Slam Doubles results
Australian Open 2R (1977Jan)
French Open W (1970)
Wimbledon SF (1970)
Team competitions
Davis Cup F (1969Ch, 1971Ch, 1972)

Ion Țiriac (Romanian pronunciation: [iˈon t͡siriˈak]; born 9 May 1939), also known as the 'Brasov Bulldozer' is a Romanian businessman and former professional tennis and ice hockey player.[3] Tiriac is the developer and owner of the Mutua Madrid Open tennis tournament.[4] In 2013 he was elected into the International Tennis Hall of Fame.[5]

Sports career

He was born in Transylvania, which is probably the reason why he has the nickname 'Count Dracula'.[6] Țiriac first appeared on the international sports scene as an ice hockey player on the Romanian national team at the 1964 Winter Olympics. Shortly after that he switched to tennis as his main sport. With fellow Romanian Ilie Năstase he won the men's doubles in the 1970 French Open and reached the Davis Cup finals several times in the 1970s.[7]

After his retirement, he served as coach and manager for players such as Ilie Năstase, Guillermo Vilas, Mary Joe Fernández, Goran Ivanišević and Marat Safin.[8]

He managed Boris Becker from 1984 to 1993. In 1998 he became president of the Romanian National Olympic Committee.

Țiriac ran major men's events in Germany, including the season-ending championships in Hanover. Although tennis is now a much smaller part of his portfolio and occupies only 5 percent of his time, he has taken particular pleasure and pride in making Madrid Tennis Open a combined men's and women's event with €7.2 million in total prize money.[9] The trophy awarded to the tournament winner bears his name.

Țiriac also holds the license for the BRD Năstase Țiriac Trophy tennis tournament since 1996. It is currently a €450,000 event, part of the ATP World Tour 250 series, held annually in Bucharest, Romania, just 2 weeks before the Madrid Open.

In 2012 he was nominated for the ITF Hall of Fame in the contributor category.[10]

On 13 July 2013 he joined the ITF Hall of Fame as a successful promoter and tournament director for numerous events including the two of the largest Masters 1000 events, the Italian Open and the Madrid Masters.

Business career

One of two Rolls-Royce Phantom IV owned by Țiriac, part of his car collection.[11]

After his retirement as a professional tennis player, Țiriac became a businessman in Germany. In 1987, he appeared in a TV commercial for Miller Lite beer with Bob Uecker, who extols Țiriac's supposed humorous qualities, laughing hysterically while Țiriac sits stone-faced.

Following the collapse of communism in Romania, he started numerous businesses and investments back home. In 1990, he founded Banca Țiriac, the first private bank in post-Communist Romania. Between that and several other enterprises (retail, insurance, auto leasing, auto dealerships, airlines, etc.), his fortune was estimated at over US$900 million in 2005.

Ion Țiriac became the first Romanian to enter Forbes' List of billionaires in the 2007 Forbes rankings, placing number 840 in the world. His wealth was estimated at $1.0 billion as of 2010, according to the magazine.[12] In 2010 TOP 300 Capital declared Ion Țiriac the richest man in Romania with a wealth estimated at €1.5–€1.6 billion ($2–$2.2 billion).[13]

Personal life

Țiriac was married between 1963 and 1965 with Erika Braedt, a handball player.[14] He has children with Mikette von Issenberg (a fashion model, who is Ion Țiriac Jr.'s mother) and with Sophie Ayad (an Egyptian journalist with whom he has two children, Karim Mihai and Ioana Natalia).[15][16][17]

Career statistics

Grand Slam finals

Doubles 2 (1–1)

Outcome Championship Partnering Opponents Score
1966 Runner-upFrench OpenRomania Ilie NăstaseUnited States Dennis Ralston
United States Clark Graebner
3–6, 3–6, 0–6
1970 WinnerFrench OpenRomania Ilie NăstaseUnited States Arthur Ashe
United States Charlie Pasarell
6–2, 6–4, 6–3

Grand Prix and WCT Tour finals 46 (22–24)

Singles 1 (1–1)

Outcome No. Date Tournament Surface Opponent Score
Winner 1. 3 August 1970 Bavarian International Tennis Championships, Munich, Germany Clay Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Nikola Pilić 2–6, 9–7, 6–3, 6–4
Runner-up 1. 1 February 1972 Omaha, Nebraska, USA Hard (i) Romania Ilie Năstase 6–2, 1–6, 1–6

Doubles 46 (22–24)

Key
Grand Slam tournaments
Grand Prix Masters
Group 1 tournaments
Group 2 tournaments
Team events
OutcomeWeek ofTournamentSurfacePartnerOpponents in the finalScore in the final
1. Winner 1970 Philadelphia WCT, USA Carpet Romania Ilie Năstase United States Arthur Ashe
United States Dennis Ralston
6–4, 6–3
2. Winner 4 May 1970 French Open, Paris Clay Romania Ilie Năstase United States Arthur Ashe
United States Charlie Pasarell
6–2, 6–4, 6–3
3. Winner 1970 Rome, Italy Clay Romania Ilie Năstase Australia William Bowrey
Australia Owen Davidson
0–6, 10–8, 6–3, 6–8, 6–1
1. Runner-up 13 July 1970 Washington DC, USA Clay Romania Ilie Năstase South Africa Bob Hewitt
South Africa Frew McMillan
5–7, 0–6
4. Winner 20 July 1970 Cincinnati, USA Clay Romania Ilie Năstase South Africa Bob Hewitt
South Africa Frew McMillan
6–3, 6–4
2. Runner-up 27 July 1970 U.S. Clay Court Championships, Indianapolis, USA Clay Romania Ilie Năstase United States Arthur Ashe
United States Clark Graebner
6–2, 4–6, 4–6
3. Runner-up 16 November 1970 Embassy British Indoor Championships, London, England Carpet Romania Ilie Năstase Australia Ken Rosewall
United States Stan Smith
4–6, 3–6, 2–6
5. Winner 7 March 1971 Hampton, USA Hard (i) Romania Ilie Năstase United States Clark Graebner
Brazil Thomaz Koch
6–4, 4–6, 7–5
6. Winner 12 April 1971 Monte Carlo, Monaco Clay Romania Ilie Năstase Netherlands Tom Okker
United Kingdom Roger Taylor
1–6, 6–3, 6–3, 8–6
4. Runner-up 18 April 1971 Palermo, Sicily, Italy Clay Romania Ilie Năstase France Georges Goven
France Pierre Barthes
2–6, 3–6
5. Runner-up 22 May 1971 Brussels, Belgium Clay Romania Ilie Năstase United States Marty Riessen
Netherlands Tom Okker
7. Winner 6 February 1972 Kansas City, USA Indoor Romania Ilie Năstase Spain Andrés Gimeno
Spain Manuel Orantes
6–7, 6–4, 7–6
6. Runner-up 14 February 1972 Los Angeles, California, USA Romania Ilie Năstase United States Jim Osborne
United States Jim McManus
2–6, 7–5, 4–6
8. Winner 5 March 1972 Hampton, USA Hard (i) Romania Ilie Năstase Spain Andrés Gimeno
Spain Manuel Orantes
6–4, 7–6
9. Winner 24 April 1972 Rome, Italy Clay Romania Ilie Năstase Australia Lew Hoad
South Africa Frew McMillan
3–6, 3–6, 6–4, 6–3, 5–3, RET.
7. Runner-up 13 May 1972 Bournemouth, England Clay Romania Ilie Năstase South Africa Frew McMillan
South Africa Bob Hewitt
5–7, 2–6
8. Runner-up 5 June 1972 Hamburg, Germany Clay South Africa Bob Hewitt Romania Ilie Năstase
Czechoslovakia Jan Kodeš
6–4, 0–6, 6–3, 2–6, 2–6
10. Winner 14 August 1972 Montreal, Canada Clay Romania Ilie Năstase Czechoslovakia Jan Kodeš
Czechoslovakia Jan Kukal
7–6, 6–3
9. Runner-up 4 February 1973 Des Moines, Iowa, USA Hard Spain Juan Gisbert Czechoslovakia Jan Kukal
Czechoslovakia Jiří Hřebec
6–4, 6–7, 1–6
10. Runner-up 3 March 1973 Hampton, Virginia, USA Hard United States Jimmy Connors Romania Ilie Năstase
United States Clark Graebner
6–4, 6–7, 1–6
11. Winner 26 March 1973 Valencia, Spain Clay United States Mike Estep Belgium Patrick Hombergen
Belgium Bernard Mignot
6–4, 1–6, 10–8
11. Runner-up 2 April 1973 Barcelona, Spain Clay United States Mike Estep Spain Manuel Orantes
Spain Juan Gisbert
4–6, 6–7
12. Runner-up 7 May 1973 Bournemouth, England Clay Italy Adriano Panatta Romania Ilie Năstase
Spain Juan Gisbert
4–6, 6–8
13. Runner-up 11 June 1973 Hamburg, Germany Clay Spain Manuel Orantes Germany Hans-Jürgen Pohmann
Germany Jürgen Fassbender
6–7, 6–7, 6–7
14. Runner-up 23 June 1973 Eastbourne, England Grass Spain Manuel Orantes United States Jim McManus
Sweden Ove Nils Bengtson
4–6, 6–4, 5–7
12. Winner 5 August 1973 Louisville, Kentucky, USA Clay Spain Manuel Orantes United States Clark Graebner
Australia John Newcombe
0–6, 6–4, 6–3
15. Runner-up 13 August 1973 Indianapolis, Indiana, USA Clay Spain Manuel Orantes South Africa Frew McMillan
Australia Bob Carmichael
3–6, 4–6
13. Winner 17 January 1977 Baltimore, Maryland, USA Carpet Argentina Guillermo Vilas Australia Ross Case
Czechoslovakia Jan Kodeš
6–3, 6–7, 6–4
16. Runner-up 7 February 1977 Springfield, Massachusetts, USA Carpet Argentina Guillermo Vilas South Africa Frew McMillan
South Africa Bob Hewitt
6–7, 6–2
14. Winner 28 March 1977 Nice, France Clay Argentina Guillermo Vilas Australia Chris Kachel
Australia Chris Lewis
6–4, 6–1
17. Runner-up 31 July 1977 South Orange, New Jersey, USA Clay Argentina Guillermo Vilas Australia Colin Dibley
Poland Wojciech Fibak
1–6, 5–7
18. Runner-up 19 September 1977 Paris, France Clay Romania Ilie Năstase France Jacques Thamin
France Christophe Roger-Vasselin
2–6, 6–4, 3–6
15. Winner 26 September 1977 Aix-en-Provence, France Clay Romania Ilie Năstase France Patrice Dominguez
Sweden Rolf Norberg
7–5, 7–6
16. Winner 3 October 1977 Tehran, Iran Clay Argentina Guillermo Vilas South Africa Bob Hewitt
South Africa Frew McMillan
1–6, 6–1, 6–4
17. Winner 3 October 1977 Tehran, Iran Clay Argentina Guillermo Vilas South Africa Bob Hewitt
South Africa Frew McMillan
1–6, 6–1, 6–4
18. Winner 21 November 1977 Buenos Aires, Argentina Clay Argentina Guillermo Vilas Argentina Ricardo Cano
Spain Antonio Muñoz
6–4, 6–0
19. Winner 23 May 1978 BMW Open, Munich, Germany Clay Argentina Guillermo Vilas Germany Jürgen Fassbender
Netherlands Tom Okker
3–6, 6–4, 7–6
19. Runner-up 30 July 1978 South Orange, New Jersey, USA Clay Argentina Guillermo Vilas United States John McEnroe
United States Peter Fleming
3–6, 3–6
20. Winner 25 September 1978 Aix-en-Provence, France Clay Argentina Guillermo Vilas Czechoslovakia Jan Kodeš
Czechoslovakia Tomáš Šmíd
7–6, 6–1
20. Runner-up 5 November 1978 Paris Bercy, France Hard Argentina Guillermo Vilas South Africa Andrew Pattison
United States Bruce Manson
6–7, 2–6
21. Runner-up 1 January 1979 Hobart, Tasmania, Australia Grass Argentina Guillermo Vilas Australia Bob Giltinan
Australia Phil Dent
6–8
22. Runner-up 29 January 1979 Richmond, Virginia, USA Carpet Argentina Guillermo Vilas United States John McEnroe
United States Brian Gottfried
4–6, 3–6
21. Winner 19 March 1979 San José, Costa Rica Hard Argentina Guillermo Vilas India Anand Amritraj
South Africa Colin Dibley
7–6, 6–1
23. Runner-up 28 May 1979 French Open, Paris, France Clay Romania Virginia Ruzici Australia Wendy Turnbull
Australia Bob Hewitt
3–6, 6–2, 3–6
24. Runner-up 9 July 1979 Gstaad, Switzerland Clay Argentina Guillermo Vilas Australia John Marks
Australia Mark Edmondson
3–6, 6–2, 3–6
22. Winner 29 July 1979 Volvo International, North Conway, New Hampshire, USA Clay Argentina Guillermo Vilas United States John Sadri
United States Tim Wilkison
6–4, 7–6

Performance timeline

Key
W  F  SF QF R# RR Q# A P Z# PO G F-S SF-B NMS NH
(W) Won tournament; reached (F) final, (SF) semifinal, (QF) quarterfinal; (R#) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; competed at a (RR) round-robin stage; reached a (Q#) qualification round; (A) absent; played in a (Z#) Davis/Fed Cup Zonal Group (with number indication) or (PO) play-off; won a (G) gold, (F-S) silver or (SF-B) bronze Olympic medal; a (NMS) downgraded Masters Series/1000 tournament; or (NH) tournament not held.
To avoid confusion and double counting, these charts are updated either at the conclusion of a tournament, or when the player's participation in the tournament has ended.
Tournament 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 SR W–L Win %
Grand Slam tournaments
Australian Championships/Australian Open A A A A A A A A A A A A 2R A 1R 0 / 2 1–2 33.33
French Championships/French Open 3R 3R 3R QF 2R 4R 1R 1R 2R A A A A A 0 / 9 15–9 62.50
Wimbledon A 1R 4R 2R 2R 2R 3R 4R A 1R 1R A A 1R 0 / 10 11–10 52.38
US National Championships/US Open A A A A 2R A 2R 2R 3R A A A A A 0 / 4 5–4 55.55
Win–Loss 2–1 2–2 5–2 5–2 3–3 4–2 3–3 4–3 3–2 0–1 0–1 n/a 1–1 0–2 0 / 25 32–25 56.14

Companies

See also

References

  1. "Profile at atpworldtour.com". Forbes.
  2. Becker, Boris (2011). The Player, Transworld Digital, Kindle Edition.
  3. "#937 Ion Tiriac". Forbes. 10 March 2010.
  4. "Madrid Masters goes bling". tennisworldusa. 8 April 2011.
  5. "Hingis elected to International Tennis Hall of Fame". ITF Tennis. 4 March 2013. Retrieved 6 March 2013.
  6. http://thebiofile.com/2010/05/biofile-with-ion-tiriac/
  7. Davis Cup Player Profile
  8. "In praise of Safin – the head case". CNN. 2 September 2009.
  9. Clarey, Christopher (9 May 2009). "Spain at Last Brings the World to Its Clay". New York Times. Retrieved 13 May 2009.
  10. "Hingis, Stich, Sukova nominated for tennis hall". 9 September 2012.
  11. The Tiriac Collection
  12. "the World's Billionaires – No. 937 Ion Tiriac". Forbers. 10 March 2010. Retrieved 1 July 2012.
  13. "TOP 300 Capital declares Ion Tiriac the richest man in Romania followed by businessmen Dinu Patriciu and Ioan Niculae". Retrieved March 8, 2014.
  14. "Sergiu Nicolaescu: "Da, am cunoscut-o pe Erika"" (in Romanian). Retrieved 25 May 2012.
  15. "Fetița lui Țiriac, în vacanță în România" (in Romanian). Retrieved 25 May 2012.
  16. "Mama lui Tiriac jr., o milionara excentrica" (in Romanian). Retrieved 15 May 2012.
  17. "Jean Maurer dezvaluie motivul ranchiunii dintre Ion Tiriac si Sergiu Nicolaescu" (in Romanian). Retrieved 25 May 2012.


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