Monica Seles

Standing 5'10" with a slim build, blonde hair, and blue eyes, Monica Seles cuts an unmistakable figure in tennis history. Born on December 2, 1973, in Novi Sad, Serbia, she began her professional career in 1988 at around age 14 and played for 15 years. She holds dual nationality, American and Serbian, and competed representing both Yugoslavia and the United States during her career.

Seles became the youngest-ever French Open champion in 1990 at age 16, and she won eight major singles titles before turning 20. She was the year-end No. 1 in 1991 and 1992, and she accumulated nine major singles titles in total. In 1993, during a match on April 30, an obsessed fan of her rival Steffi Graf stabbed her in the back with a 9-inch knife. She did not return to tennis for over two years. After coming back in 1995, she won the 1996 Australian Open, but she struggled to maintain her top form. Her last professional match was at the 2003 French Open, though she did not officially retire until February 2008. She was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2009 and was named one of Time's '30 Legends of Women's Tennis.' Many consider her one of the greatest players ever, with some suggesting she could have become the most accomplished of all time had the attack not occurred.