Sandra Bauknecht was a professional tennis player who played at different times for the Dutch, Belgian and Italian National Teams. She was a two time US National Team assistant coach. She coached the young girls’ team for the United States during the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. She is currently a coach at a recreation facility in Florida. In her coaching job she has developed a program that is helping kids of all abilities develop their individual tennis skills so they can improve their game when they get older and move on to the harder games like the harder courts in tennis. The children have improved tremendously since taking the program from a junior high school to a high school level.
The last part of Sandra’s title as” Partner of the Year” was” tallest female professional tennis player” which earned her a share of the International Federation of Association Tennis. This gave her an opportunity to show that she deserves the recognition that is being shown by being a member of the biggest and most recognized sporting association in the world. She was also able to show that height is not an issue in tennis, and that anyone can play the game. She became the first woman to be listed as a” Partner of the Year” in the ITA’s records. Her achievements are listed on a plaque that sits proudly on the wall in her office.
Bauknecht has inspired many youngsters to take up the sport of tennis. She has inspired the likes of Victoria Beckham, Lisa Fernandez, Martina Navratilova, Kim Clijsters and Andre Agassi. She is the inspiration for many players because of her size and strength. She overcame being shorter than most to become a top player. Now she is sharing her knowledge to help youngsters overcome the obstacles that they may face in their sport. She has proven that with dedication and perseverance anyone can become a top player in any sport.